Allegedly defamatory claims in e-recycling report weren't commercial speech despite some economic incentive

Electronic Recycling Ass’n v. Basel Action Network, 2019 WL 1453575, No. C18-1601-MJP (W.D. Wash. Apr. 2, 2019)Plaintiff ERA is a Canadian non-profit corporation that specializes in recovering, refurbishing, and reusing discarded electronic equipment or “e-waste.” When it determines that equipment is no longer reusable, it allegedly transfers that equipment to “regulated and approved facilities to be recycled.” These entities, not ERA, allegedly then ship dismantled components to further destinations. Defendant BAN is a non-profit environmental advocacy organization based in Seattle that investigates and reports on e-waste, including whether its exportation violates the Basel Convention governing such waste. In October 2018, BAN published “Export of e-Waste from Canada: A Story as Told by GPS Trackers” along with a press release titled “GPS Trackers Reveal More Canadian e-Waste Exported to Developing Countries.” It said that…

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