American Center for Democracy

www.public-integrity.org
contact: www.public-integrity.org/contact

New York, N.Y.
Oct. 15, 2006

PRESS RELEASE: CRITICAL 1st AMENDMENT CASE HEADED TO APPEAL

New York, N.Y.--On November 8, 2006, the United States Court of Appeals for
the Second Circuit will hear oral argument in Dr. Rachel Ehrenfeld's appeal
of a lower court's dismissal of her critical lawsuit against Saudi financier
Sheikh Khalid Salim bin Mahfouz.

If successful, Dr. Ehrenfeld's case could establish an effective wall
against frivolous and malicious libel litigation targeting American freedom
of the press from foreign shores. A free and informative press is a key
pillar of democracy. American national security is in danger when outsiders
are allowed to inhibit U.S. news institutions and journalists from abroad.

Mahfouz is a prominent libel tourist, having sued or threatened to sue
dozens of authors in England, including Dr. Ehrenfeld. A recent decision by
the House of Lords in England, Jameel v. Wall Street Journal Europe,
suggests that English law may provide future protections for authors.
However, there is no guarantee that lower English courts will follow it.
Moreover, other countries remain attractive to libel tourists. The success
of Dr. Ehrenfeld's lawsuit is therefore critical both for her -- who cannot
relitigate against Mahfouz in England to benefit from the Jameel decision --
and for future libel tourist targets.

In 2004, England's High Court granted Mahfouz a default libel judgment
against Dr. Ehrenfeld, based on statements in her book, Funding Evil, which
investigates international terror funding. Dr. Ehrenfeld did not defend
herself in England, where she neither lives nor works, and where the book
was not published. Instead, she sued Mahfouz in New York federal court,
seeking a declaratory judgment to rule the British decision unenforceable in
the U.S. In April 2006, the lower court dismissed Dr. Ehrenfeld's lawsuit
on a technical ground.

Dr. Ehrenfeld's New York action seeks federal court protection of U.S. First
Amendment rights -- for herself and other U.S. investigative reporters who
cover national security issues, including terror financing. The libel
tourist phenomenon has to date successfully silenced many American authors
and newspaper and book publishers. Dr. Ehrenfeld's action could set a vital
legal precedent, to protect U.S. writers from them once and for all.

Contact: American Center for Democracy-
www.public-integrity.org/contact