Subscribe to the Privacy Headline RSS feed | Subscribe to the Privacy Headline feed via EmailNew Libel Tourism Law Recognizes Shield for Websites, Others Facing Foreign Judgments
August 16, 2010 in Privacy & Security Law Report · 1 Comment
A law signed Aug. 10 by President Obama requires parties seeking to enforce foreign defamation judgments in U.S. courts to establish that they would have prevailed in a domestic court under both the First Amendment and the Communications Decency Act, 47 U.S.C. §230…
The signing of the Speech Act by President Obama is the final endorsement of what has been the most effective and concentrated lobbying campaign since that orchestrated by the tobacco industry some years ago. The priority afforded to this US “Libel Tourism” legislation is as inappropriate and unnecessary as it is bewildering. As a UK/Irish media lawyer of more than 30 years standing, I have never once sought to enforce a UK libel judgment in the US, and I am still waiting to be advised of one single example of such an attempt by any other practitioner.
As the lobbying campaign is continuing to be driven by the publishing industry in the UK, I again have to ask the question…….what could possibly have justified such a high profile campaign, in circumstances where the number of libel actions brought by international personalities in the UK has been negligible? Notwithstanding this scenario, we have this media frenzy persistently criticising our defamation laws – legislation which, in my respectful opinion, has contributed in no small measure to ensuring that our broadsheets are among the most credible in the world. In the absence of such laws, it would effectively be impossible for the man on the street to have access to any form of justice, while encouraging the often one sided propaganda that is regularly exhibited in the American press.
Whilst I have absolutely no problem with a fair and balanced debate, the hysteria emanating from certain sections of our press is both misleading and mischievous, and is geared more to protecting the financial interests of publishers, rather than having any reasonable justification.
On another note, now that comity appears to have been thrown out the window, it will be interesting to see how the President and Congress react if and when any similar moves are made by other countries to undermine and circumvent US laws!
Paul Tweed
Senior Partner
Johnsons Law Firm
Belfast | Dublin | London
w: http://www.johnsonslaw.com
b: http://www.globallibeldebate.com