Yale Press Prevails in Defending Author’s Work

New Haven, Conn. — KinderUSA and its chair, Dr. Laila al-Marayati, have withdrawn their libel suit against the Yale University Press, Dr. Matthew Levitt and Levitt’s employer, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

The suit, which was filed in California Superior Court in April 2007, involved a passage in Levitt’s book, “Hamas: Politics, Charity, and Terrorism in the Service of Jihad,” which was published by the Yale University Press in 2006.

The Press, Levitt, and the Institute will not provide the plaintiffs with any monetary compensation, and they have not agreed to make any changes in the passage.

The withdrawal of the suit came shortly after the Press, Levitt and the Institute filed anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) motions directed against the lawsuit. California’s anti-SLAPP law is intended to protect authors, publishers and others against baseless lawsuits that might chill free speech. The Press believes that the California statute has had its intended effect in this case.

The Press was represented by Floyd Abrams and Dean Ringel of the law firm Cahill Gordon & Reindel, LLP.