Events | 2010.03.23
Libel reform bill to tackle 'libel tourism'
The government plans to prevent claims stemming from online publication and protect investigative journalism
Foreign claimants will find it more difficult to initiate libel cases in UK courts and a "public interest" defence should be introduced to protect investigative journalism, under reforms unveiled by the government today .
The legal proposals – which will also prevent multiple defamation claims based on repeated downloadings of the same online story – were announced in a written ministerial statement by the justice secretary, Jack Straw.
Aimed at combating the "chilling effect" of Britain\'s strict libel laws, the changes will be included in a libel reform bill to be introduced into parliament if Labour is returned to government after the general election.
The recommendations build on the findings of the libel working group, a body established by the Ministry of Justice earlier this year . The group\'s report is published today.
"Our current libel laws need to achieve a fair balance between allowing people to protect their reputations from defamatory allegations, and ensuring that freedom of expression and the public\'s right to know on matters of public interest are not unnecessarily impeded," said Straw. "At the moment, we believe that the balance is tilted too much in favour of the former.
"The changes announced today, together with other steps already taken by the government, will redress this imbalance. Replacing the multiple publication rule will ensure that people cannot take court action every time the same article is downloaded, preventing costly and unnecessary legal actions and the uncertainty for publishers of open-ended liability.
"The government is considering whether a statutory public interest defence would help journalists and other groups who investigate matters of public importance, who are sometimes prevented from making their findings known because of the threat of legal action."
The UK\'s libel laws have been long been accused of being restrictive of free speech. The advent of the internet has enabled foreign claimants to pursue cases against foreign publications in UK courts based on the fact that articles published on the internet can be downloaded in the UK.
Jonathan Heawood, the director of the writers\' organisation English PEN , said: "Over 40,000 people have signed [our] libel reform petition . The level of popular support for reform shows that this law is not just about journalists but human rights activists, scientists and academics, even mothers chatting online: free expression really is an issue for everyone."
Tracey Brown, managing director of Sense About Science , added: "It would be ludicrous for any party to suggest we should continue with these unfair and ridiculed libel laws. We need freedom of speech that we can exercise confidently, to discuss science and medicine or any other subject of public interest. Not semi-feudal laws that tie people up in court for two years and chill public discussion."
The Libel Reform Campaign believes that the libel laws are stacked in favour of wealthy claimants. The most expensive libel action in 2008 cost £3,243,980 and the average cost for the 20 most expensive trials was £753,676.95, according to the organisation.
"The average cost of a libel trial in England & Wales is 140 times the European equivalent," the Libel Reform Campaign said. "In a survey of 600 GPs, half believed that English libel law was \'restricting open discussion of the potential risks of drug treatment\'."
Simon Juden, chief executive of the Publishers Association, welcomed the proposed changes.
"We have strenuously argued for some time that current English libel laws need urgent reform," he said. "The government should legislate for clearer lines of defence, as publishers and writers are currently being stifled by laws which force them to prove why their works are not defamatory.
"Not enough credence is given to the fact that defendants may have believed they were acting in the public interest, or to the basic right to freely express opinions about organisations and individuals."
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