The ground is moving under Community libel legislation, one ruling at a time. The latest is a judgement from Justice Eady that Defamation on internet bulletin boards is more like slander than libel. Justice Eady said that bulletin board discussions are characterised by “give and take” and should be considered in that context.
In English law, a victim of libel can win damages even if he has not suffered financial loss as a result of the statement. A person who has been slandered must prove that actual damage has been suffered.
Read the full write-up by Out-Law here, but note that they have confused chat with bulletin boards, and that there is a statement at the end from Justice Eady that confuses things further, because it relates to blogs, not discussion boards or chat:
Out-Law: “Internet chat more likely slander than libel, says High Court”.
Update: following my note to the editor of Out-Law, the title of this article has now changed to read “Bulletin board postings more likely slander than libel, says High Court”. As the Editor quite rightly told me, they can’t really do much about Justice Eady’s reference to blogs.
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1 Libel » The Copyright Permission and Libel Handbook: A Step-by-Step Guide for Writers, Editors, and Publishers (Wiley Books for Writers Series) // Aug 8, 2008 at 12:02 am
[...] Internet Forums More Like Slander than Libel, Says High Court …The ground is moving under Community libel legislation, one ruling at a time, with a judgement from Justice Eady that Defamation on internet bulletin boards is more like slander than libel. Justice Eady said that bulletin board … [...]
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