Defamation

Defamation is the area of law that protects individuals and organisations from having their reputation damaged by another party. This is clearly a very dangerous area for journalism, and one that requires great care navigating. Any statement that is defamatory to an individual or organisation, and is broadcast to a third party, is susceptible to a libel action.

For a libel action to succeed, one of the following criteria must be satisfied:

A person is:

- exposed to hatred, ridicule or contempt

- caused to be shunned or avoided

- lowered in the estimation of right-thinking members of society

- disparaged in his or her business, trade, office or profession.

As defamation is a civil matter, the burden of proof is lower (‘on the balance of probabilities’). Therefore, the onus is not on the claimant to prove damage has been suffered, rather the Defendant must demonstrate a successful defence. The main libel defences are as follows:

- It is true

- It is the honestly held opinion of the defendant

- The information is in the public interest

- The information is protected by privilege.

If the defendant can prove one of the above, then the claim will not be successful.

In 2013, a new defamation act was introduced, in order to tighten the law surrounding libel. This act has brought about two major developments.

The first is that, prior to suing, the defendant must prove that ‘serious harm’ has been caused. This has been introduced in an attempt to protect freedom of speech and expression, and prevent major corporations taking out lawsuits against small organisations and individuals for minor slights.

The second development is a stricter test for libel cases being heard in England and Wales as to their link to this country, preventing ‘Libel tourism’. ‘Libel tourism’ refers to bringing actions under the stricter defamation laws of England and Wales, despite the claim not originating within this jurisdiction.