Tuesday 15 October 2013

Anonymous posters and the new Defamation Act: the draft regulations – Graham Smith

Anonymous posters and the new Defamation Act: the draft regulations – Graham Smith | Inforrm's Blog: "The procedure under the draft regulations is so bureaucratic – not easily recognisable as the “quick, clear and practical” process promised in Commons Committee in June 2012 – that it is possible that website operators will ignore it and rely on other available defences.
Even then, however, Section 5 may have a side effect.  A valid complainant’s notice is much more likely than an informal defamation complaint to fix a hosting intermediary with knowledge of unlawfulness for the purpose of the ECommerce Directive defence.  So even if the Section 5 procedure is ignored, a website operator may have more incentive than previously to take a down an anonymous post on receipt of a valid Section 5 notice.
The new intermediary defence under Section 10 will also be significant, whereby a court does not have jurisdiction to hear and determine an action for defamation brought against a person who was not the author, editor or publisher of the statement complained of unless the court is satisfied that it is not reasonably practicable for an action to be brought against the author, editor or publisher." 'via Blog this'

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