Posting on Instagram about Gaza can be controversial. But when does online pushback go too far? One attorney who was terminated soon after posting publicly on Instagram sued two lawyers she alleged helped direct attention to her employer. A federal judge has now thrown out her claims against the two attorneys, finding that the allegations did not state a legally actionable tort.
On August 27, 2026, Florida federal judge Jacqueline Becerra of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida dismissed the Corrected First Amended Complaint filed by Zohra Khorashi. Khorashi’s suit accused two other attorneys of tortious interference, defamation, and civil conspiracy for providing websites known for doxing a connection between her social media posts critical of the Israeli government and her employment at Chartwell Law Offices, LLP, which led to her termination. In approving the motion to dismiss from defendants Gadi Beer and Beth Gillman Beer, Judge Becerra ruled that the defendants can’t be held liable for disseminating information that’s both publicly available and truthful.
Khorashi was represented by attorneys affiliated with CAIR-Florida, while the Beers were represented by attorneys associated with The Lawfare Project and other counsel. With the amended complaint in Khorashi v. Beer et al. dismissed with prejudice on three of the four counts and leave to amend denied on the other, Khorashi must seek different legal paths if she intends to press on against the Beers.
The Internet Gets Involved
According to the motion-to-dismiss order, Gadi Beer helped launch Chartwell Law in 2002 and served in senior leadership positions until leaving to start a consulting firm in 2023. When the ongoing conflict in Gaza escalated with an attack on Israel by Hamas on October 7, 2023, Beer took a leave from his new firm to help in the aftermath. His wife Beth, employed as the Regional Director in the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, remained in the U.S. with their children.
Khorashi joined Chartwell Law’s Miami, Florida office as an associate attorney in 2018. She also maintained the Instagram account “thatlawyermomlife,” which displayed her real name and used the same picture as the one posted on her Chartwell Law profile page. After the October 7 attacks, Khorashi began using her social media account to voice support for the Palestinians. According to her complaint, she took pains to avoid negative references to Jews or Judaism, instead focusing her ire on the IDF, Zionism, and the Israeli government.
In late November 2023, Khorashi’s posts fell under attack by an account named “Beth Margot.” Characterizing the account’s comments as increasingly “obsessive, vile, and hateful,” she blocked the poster. She later determined that it was an account owned by Beth Beer. In January 2024, she met twice with Chartwell Law’s leadership over concerns raised by “unidentified individuals” that her posts could be construed as antisemitic. She claims that she wasn’t told that she’d violated firm policies or that she should stop posting.
On February 18, 2024, an altered version of one of Khorashi’s posts appeared on an Instagram page called “Jew Hate Database” (“Jewhatedb”). This included showing Khorashi’s Instagram handle, which could be used to find her account and her real name. The comments section for the post filled with hostile reactions, some of which suggested finding out where Khorashi worked and getting her fired. According to the amended complaint, this led to an appearance by “Beth Margot,” who, in addition to posting where she worked and providing a link to the firm’s profile, alleged that her Jewish clients would be upset by her “disgraceful” posts. Gadi Beer also allegedly reposted the link.
Ten days later, StopAntisemitism.org’s X account posted Khorashi’s full name and her employment at Chartwell Law, which set off “an overwhelming number” of calls and emails either directly threatening her or calling on the firm to fire her. She was terminated the following day for “damaging the firm’s reputation and client relationships,” along with allegedly making Jewish coworkers uncomfortable with being in the office with her. She filed a civil rights suit against the firm in Khorashi v. Chartwell Law Offices, LLP as a separate legal action from her lawsuit with the Beers.
Why the Claims Failed
Khorashi’s suit brought four counts against the Beers. Both Gadi and Beth faced one count of intentional, unjustified tortious interference, along with a civil conspiracy claim. She also accused Beth of defamation by implication.
In dismissing the suit, Judge Becerra repeatedly made the same point: the Beers did share information, but it was truthful and made publicly available by Khorashi. The judge noted that Khorashi’s suit failed to show the business advantage required for a tortious interference claim. Since it was a third party that altered Khorashi’s post before making it available, the Beers were legally blameless.
The defamation claim was dismissed as a matter of law, as Beth Beer’s comments were opinions and subjective characterizations that couldn’t be proven false. This was reinforced by the fact that even under a pseudonym, Beer was still commenting on what Khorashi had posted. As for the civil conspiracy, the judge ruled it suffered from failure to state a claim because it lacked supporting facts. There was no solid, tangible proof presented that showed either an agreement or evidence of Jewhatedb and StopAntisemitism having worked together.
The court did not reach the defendants’ anti-SLAPP argument, concluding that the parties had not addressed whether Florida’s statute applies as an independent basis for dismissal in federal court.
Khorashi's discrimination lawsuit against Chartwell Law remains ongoing.
