The magazine alleged that Lu spread the rumor in order to unseat Chen. Lu filed a civil suit against seven people at the magazine on Dec. 21, 2000, demanding a formal apology from the magazine, saying the story had damaged her reputation.
On April 10, 2002, the Taipei District Court found the defendants not guilty of criminal libel, basing its decision on Article 509, although the court ruled that the story had damaged Lu's reputation.
The court also ordered the seven defendants to "clarify and admit" their mistake and publish a statement to that effect on the front pages of the nation's 32 newspapers as well as broadcasting it on radio and TV for three days.
On Dec. 13, 2002, the High Court upheld the verdict on appeal but reduced the punishment to run one-day front-page advertisements in four major Chinese-language newspapers. The court also declined Lu's request that the defendants broadcast a clarification on radio and TV for three days.
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