Olivia O'Kane - Key changes with England and Wales Defamation Act

Key changes with E&W Defamation Act http://t.co/VuxGQng8H0 1. the fact that companies suing in libel must show financial loss;
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

The Defamation Act 2013 will come into effect in England and Wales as of January 1 2014, as we explained earlier here. Ahead of the new year Olivia O'Kane, Northern Ireland media lawyer at Carson McDowell and media law blogger, explains the 9 key changes enacted under the Defamation Act 2013. Click below to see the rest

Defamation Act change: 2. Introduces a serious harm test which weeds out weak and spurious claims;
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

Defamation Act change: 3. Clarifies the complex case law by summarising it and sets out the defences clearly;
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

Defamation Act change: 4. defence of publication on a matter of public interest is essentially Reynolds & no prepub contact reportage cases;
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

Defamation Act change:5. New defence for operators of websites&content hosts eg comment pieces on blogs require contact author before host
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

Defamation Act change: 6. Academic and scientific debate is protected where it is in the public interest e.g. Simon Singh
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

Defamation Act change: 7. Introduced single publication rule – very important for social media user;
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013

Defamation Act change: 8. Prevents libel tourism where there are tenuous links to E&W; 9. Removes presumption in favour of jury trial
— Olivia O'Kane (@OliviaOKane1) August 1, 2013