Symposium: Reform of Defamation Law

In November 2019, the Minister for Justice and Equality, Mr Charlie Flanagan T.D. hosted a symposium on the reform of Ireland’s defamation laws in the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin. The event brought together media, academics, the legal profession, social media companies, NGOs and relevant state bodies to consider how the Defamation Act 2009 might be amended.

The purpose of the symposium was to launch the final phase of reflection and conclusion on what changes may be recommended to the Defamation Act 2009. Once this final phase of the reflection has been completed, it is expected that a report on the review with options for reform will be submitted to the Minister by the end of March 2020 with a view to bring legislative proposals to Government in early course.

Drawing on the key themes which emerged from a public consultation on the issue, the symposium considered how to reform Irish defamation laws in order to:

• avoid ‘chilling’ effects of high/unpredictable awards and legal costs on public interest media reporting
• ensure effective and proportionate protection against unfair damage to a person’s good name

develop the use of alternative dispute resolution processes and solutions, and avoid defamation as a ‘rich man’s law

• effectively tackle the new and specific problems raised by online defamation