British Government Release Draft Defamation Bill To Address Libel Tourism

From the Independent: with a new Defamation Bill, the British government announces changes in libel laws that seek to protect the expression of honest opinion. More here from Inform’s Blog, the BBC, but some criticism from the Content ETC blog. Here’s a link to the full text of the bill, requests for proposals, and other materials. Analysis here from the Telegraph.

Briefly, an individual would have to demonstrate that a statement has caused or is likely to harm to his reputation before he can maintain an action for defamation. Defenses include matter of public interest, honest opinion, privilege, and truth.