Defamation

Celebrity actor Johnny Depp has lost a high-profile libel case against the publisher of The Sun after the newspaper described him as a "wife beater". The Queen's Bench Division of the High Court handed down judgment this morning in what has been dubbed the "libel trial of the century" by some commen

A review of Ireland's defamation laws and options for reform are to be laid before Justice Minister Helen McEntee. The Department of Justice aims for fresh legislation to be ready for governmental approval before the end of the year.

A&L Goodbody has directly lobbied government ministers for the removal of juries from defamation cases, according to reports. The firm wrote to Justice Minister Helen McEntee following her appointment earlier this year to argue for urgent reform of the Defamation Act 2009, The Irish Times report

A Limerick solicitor has launched defamation proceedings against the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) over its comments about a personal injury case, according to reports. Gerard O'Neill, founder and principal of O'Neill & Co Solicitors, acted for a claimant in a case which

Ronan Daly Jermyn partner Darryl Broderick and trainee solicitor Therese Collins review a significant reduction in an award made by a jury to a plaintiff in High Court defamation proceedings where an “offer of amends” had been made. The Court of Appeal recently significantly reduced

Ireland's defamation regime is having a detrimental impact on press freedom and the commercial viability of the press, the Press Council of Ireland and the Office of the Press Ombudsman have said. The independent press regulators repeated their call for the government to complete a long-promised rev

The High Court has ordered that State non-parties must make discovery of documents to a defendant in a defamation suit. Background

Ronan Daly Jermyn partner Darryl Broderick and trainee solicitor Sinéad Harrington examine the Irish courts’ general reluctance to grant an extension of the one-year limitation period in defamation cases. In a previous insight here, RDJ examined the 2018 case of Nóirín O&r

Ireland's defamation laws pose "a significant threat to press freedom", Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has said. The international NGO has ranked Ireland at 13 out of 180 countries in its 2020 World Press Freedom Index, up from 15 in 2019.

The Court of Appeal has dismissed Ryanair’s appeal in a defamation action taken against three pilots. Following a 27-day trial, the jury found that while the words complained of were defamatory, they were published by the defendants without malice and since Mr Justice Bernard Barton had previo

A man claims he was defamed by two financial institutions over their alleged lengthy failure to forward maintenance payments in respect of his son to his former partner. He alleges that failures by Ulster Bank and EBS damaged his relationship with his son for many years because his former partner be

A man who was ordered to get off the Luas despite having a valid ticket has been awarded €500 in the High Court. Finding that the man had been defamed by the security guard who tried to put him off the train, Mr Justice Anthony Barr said that the “fleeting defamation” was “alm

A man has been awarded €500 in damages and legal costs over a "fleeting" incident of defamation on a Luas. Leon Diop, 24, sued Transdev Dublin Light Rail and security firm STT Risk Management after he was asked to leave the tram after accusing a security guard of racial profiling.

The definition of what constitutes a defamatory statement is to be set out in Scots law for the first time under draft legislation published today. The Defamation and Malicious Publication Bill would simplify and modernise defamation law and aims to ensure that a better balance is struck between pro

The removal of juries, limitation of damages and more certainty in defamation cases have been raised as proposals to reform the Defamation Act 2009.