Ireland looks set to be the first EU jurisdiction to introduce laws to limit the use of strategic lawsuits filed by people seeking to shut journalists or activists up with courtroom bullying.
The proposed changes are included in a report by Justice Minister Helen McEntee to Ireland’s Cabinet in preparation of the publication of a new Defamation Amendment Bill.
Among other measures defendants in defamation suits, typically journalists, will be able to apply to court for the summary dismissal of proceedings they believe to be a SLAPP. These would typically involve groundless or exaggerated lawsuits filed by wealthy individuals or entities against a journalist or an activist.
The reforms also aim to reduce the use of Ireland as a libel tourism destination where people use Irish courts to sue journalists not writing specifically for an Irish audience. Ireland does not cap damages from defamation suits which makes a threat of a lawsuit in Ireland expensive and dangerous for a defending journalist.
A prominent case that exposed Ireland’s openness to cross-border bullying was a case brought by American motivational speaker Tony Robbins against New York-based internet website Buzzfeed. That’s although 84% of the article’s readers where in the US.
The reforms will likely include the abolishing of trials in deciding defamation suits which will make the jurisdiction less attractive for corporate bullies. The new laws, if approved, will force businesses who sue journalists and activists to show they have sustained serious financial loss to be able to claim damages.
Some changes to Malta’s defamation laws have been proposed by the government in the aftermath of the public inquiry into the killing of Daphne Caruana Galizia, herself a victim of multiple strategic lawsuits. Critics have complained the proposed reforms do not go far enough to address the risk of a chilling effect on independent media reporting on powerful bullies.