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International Edition

Will the Hackgate scandal finally usher in exemplary damages?

It is a mark of the media frenzy over privacy injunctions that the topic has continued to hog the headlines even while a related issue of arguably far more significance has played out: the dramatic escalation of the phone-hacking scandal. True, the issue has dogged News International for years but it was only last month that the company issued an apology and moved to compensate victims – a measure that came a week after two senior News of the World (NoW) journalists were arrested on suspicion of unlawfully intercepting voicemail messages.
4 minute read

International Edition

The Big Brother star, the footballer, privacy law and the judiciary

In the increasingly heated debate about the state of English privacy law, the courts have frequently been accused of seeking to introduce a privacy law 'by the back door'. The decision in CTB v News Group Newspapers [2011] contains a robust judicial response to that criticism. In his judgment, Mr Justice Eady - the judge who has so far borne the brunt of the media's ire - tackles head on the suggestion that the judges are overriding the democratic process by unilaterally creating a new privacy law. The judgment also touches on another important and controversial issue, namely the circumstances in which an injunction should be refused or restricted on the basis that the private material has already entered the public domain.
10 minute read

International Edition

Libel reform – a hack's proposal

What better way to relax after a hard week's sweating over an extended focus on libel and privacy law than listening to The Guardian's editor give a lecture on libel reform? A minor streak of obsession with the topic had set in by the time I sat down in the lecture theatre at City University on Tuesday to hear from Alan Rusbridger. As you'd expect, he put the position for libel reform, freedom of speech and concern over privacy law somewhat better than most of the self-serving fluff the media has served up in recent weeks.
8 minute read

International Edition

In depth: Defamation and privacy

Already facing smaller payouts and a drop in claims, libel work has faded from its 1980s glory days. Will reform of defamation and civil costs - and the rise of reputation managers - spell the end for traditional libel lawyers?
1 minute read

International Edition

Privacy hysteria misses real issues

Media outrage over superinjunctions obscures justified concerns about rise of judicially-enforced privacy, argues RPC's Keith Mathieson
5 minute read

International Edition

A debased debate - media campaigning on free speech is too often a joke

It seemed like a good idea at the time. With plenty of interesting recent developments, I decided to write the lead piece for this week's in depth on defamation and privacy. Then stuff kept happening… well, it's certainly been fascinating but it's also been a fairly depressing spectacle as the debate about privacy, libel and free speech has been warped beyond all recognition by media hysteria.
3 minute read

International Edition

Injunctions 101 – hyper, super or anonymised?

Hardly a day has gone by without coverage in the media of privacy injunctions. It is a subject that has excited the media, from The Star to The Times. But what is the difference between 'super', 'hyper' and 'anonymised' injunctions, and is all the media fuss really justified?
4 minute read

International Edition

Treading carefully - managing company security while keeping employee privacy intact

Kroll Ontrack's Ben Fielding examines the challenging paradox of how to manage company security while keeping employee privacy policies intact...
6 minute read

International Edition

A 'laughing stock' libel law no more? The Defamation Bill

On 15 March the Government made good on a manifesto commitment of both coalition parties to act on libel reform, unveiling a draft Defamation Bill for consultation until 10 June.
8 minute read

International Edition

A bitter bill to swallow - Carter-Ruck tackles the Defamation Bill

Campaigners have been pushing for libel reform, but Carter-Ruck's Nigel Tait and Athalie Matthews say the proposed Defamation Bill 
is overcomplicated and unwieldy
5 minute read

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