- “Anything that tends to lower the reputation of an individual amongst right thinking people or damages them in their trade or profession.”
- Anything negative in a broad sense.
- Examples:
- “At the heart of libel law is getting it right.”
- Information has to be published to a third party to be libellous.
- Burden of Proof
- Libel laws apply equally on the Internet as it does to other formats.
- Limitation period — 1 year from publication date.
- Since introduction of conditional fees, anyone can sue for libel
- Repetition rule
- defamatory statements
- Injunctions are rare
- Damages
- Individuals
- Companies
- Not public authorities/political parties