Conrad and Lady Black: Dancing on the Edge in 2012, the case was described as a "$2.5-million suit" and Bower said, "How can a convicted fraudster find a jury who will say that his reputation has been damaged by a book that says he's a fraudster?" A passing reference in the book to the British businessman, pornographer, and publisher Richard Desmond led to Desmond unsuccessfully suing Bower for libel in 2009. Desmond argued that the description in the book that he was "ground into the dust" when he had published an apology after Black had threatened to sue for libel had weakened his reputation. Notes References Conrad and
Libel tourism to the statute passed in New York. (See 735 ILL. COMP. STAT 5/12-621 (b)(7) (2009); 735 ILL. COMP. STAT. 5/2-209 (b-5) (2009).) In May 2009, Florida also enacted a Libel Tourism law similar to the law passed in New York. (Florida Statutes 55.605 (2)(h); 55.6055) Libel tourism Libel tourism is a term, first coined by Geoffrey Robertson, to describe forum shopping for libel suits. It particularly refers to the practice of pursuing a case in England and Wales, in preference to other jurisdictions, such as the United States, which provide more extensive defenses for those accused of making derogatory statements.