Defamation

Contributed by Carolyn Tan and current to 1 September 2005

The law of defamation is concerned with striking a compromise between protecting a person’s reputation, generally by awarding damages as compensation for harm done, and the claim to freedom of speech and comment. This chapter deals with the law in Western Australia. There are different laws in other states and territories in Australia, so the law described in this chapter cannot be relied on in relation to defamatory statements made to people outside WA. Publications to people in other states and overseas will generally be governed by the law there. It was recently announced that the Attorneys General of the States and Territories had reached agreement in principle on uniform defamation laws that would apply throughout Australia, but these have yet to be enacted. If these are passed in WA, in the form as agreed, then there are likely to be some changes to the law as described in this chapter. Some of the likely major changes are foreshadowed in this chapter.

• Introduction
• The elements of defamation
• Defences
• Remedies
• Practice and procedure prior to legal action
• Contact points and other useful resources