photo by Garry Knight

Should a person who defamed someone apologize publicly? What are the potential legal benefits and risks to making such apologies?

Qualified privilege allows an otherwise defamatory publication to escape civil liability, if the person who made the defamatory expression had a duty to communicate, and the person who received it had a corresponding duty to receive the information.  It is based upon the idea that there are some things the public needs to know, and that the importance of expressing such knowledge may outweigh the protection of a particular person’s reputation.

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The defence of fair comment allows for the free expression of opinions on matters of public interest.

By Pete O'Shea [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Defaming someone in a publication may be allowed by the courts if it’s in the public interest and the author was diligent in their reporting.

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Ontario has an anti-SLAPP law intended to encourage expression and debate on matters of public interest, by discouraging meritless lawsuits meant to stifle that expression.

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Defamation Lawyer, Gil Zvulony successfully defended an Anti-SLAPP that involved postings about a real estate agent on WeChat.

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Toronto Internet lawyer discusses the law with respect to online pranks and challenges.

Toronto Defamation lawyer Gil Zvulony spoke recently with the CBC about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s threat of defamation proceedings against opposition leader Andrew Scheer. Mr. Zvulony thought that Trudeau’s faced an uphill battle in court and any lawsuit in Ontario would likely get dismissed under Ontario’s anti-Gag Proceedings law.

By Blogtrepreneur (Legal Gavel & Closed Law Book) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Toronto Defamation Lawyer Gil Zvulony successfully represented Ben Rabidoux, a defendant in the Ontario Court of Appeal, in a precedent setting case that was one of the first to test Ontario’s anti-SLAPP legislation (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) in the courts.