Online Defamation Training
These modules are on defamation law in England & Wales. They are aimed at organisations that publish material that may be critical of the activities of individuals or companies, for example, to highlight corruption or human rights breaches. They are designed for people with no legal background.
There are five e-learning modules covering different parts of defamation law and how to apply it, a quiz to check how much you have learnt, and a checklist to use once you have completed the training when reviewing publications to help you remember what to look out for.
Thanks to Guy Vassall-Adams and Aidan Wills from Matrix Chambers for partnering with us to produce the content for the modules.
A4ID also gratefully acknowledges the Legal Education Foundation grant which supported this project.
Module 1a | Introduction
Module 1b | Types of Defamation
Module 1c – What is defamatory?
Module 1d – What counts as publication, and the serious harm test
Module 1e – Who can sue and when?
Module 2 Defamatory Meaning
Module 3a – Public Interest and Truth Defences
Module 3b – Other Defences
Module 4 - Avoiding Defamation Claims
Module 5 - Responding to Complaints or Claims
Defamation Training Quiz
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Question 1 of 20
1. Question
The claimant does not have to establish that the defamatory statement is untrue.
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The defendant bears the burden of establishing that the defamatory statement is true.
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Question 2 of 20
2. Question
A person can only claim for defamation if a publication refers to her by name.
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A person can claim for defamation if they are identifiable as a result of information in the publication. For example, a job title, a photograph, a description of a person, or a cartoon image could be identifying information.
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Question 3 of 20
3. Question
A claimant can bring a claim for defamation if she can establish that the publication caused, or would be likely to cause, some harm to her reputation.
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A claimant must show that the publication has caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm to her reputation
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Question 4 of 20
4. Question
The writer, the editor and the publisher of a defamatory report can all be sued for defamation.
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Everyone involved creating a publication is potentially liable.
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Question 5 of 20
5. Question
A defamation claim can’t be brought on behalf of a person who is already dead.
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The individual must be living.
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Question 6 of 20
6. Question
You can be sued for retweeting a defamatory tweet.
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Re-tweeting the information amounts to publishing the information to third parties and you can be sued for it.
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Question 7 of 20
7. Question
Companies can sue for defamation.
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Companies can sue for defamation providing that they establish that the publication caused, or was likely to cause, serious financial loss.
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Question 8 of 20
8. Question
You cannot be sued for a defamatory publication which was accidental.
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Accidental publications can give rise to liability in defamation.
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Question 9 of 20
9. Question
Who decides on the meaning of a statement alleged to be defamatory?
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Meaning is decided by a judge.
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Question 10 of 20
10. Question
If someone accesses an online blog post while at a computer in England the post has been published in England.
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Material is published in England when it has been read or downloaded in England.
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Question 11 of 20
11. Question
Which one of the following is NOT a defence to a claim for defamation?
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It is not a defence to a defamation claim that a publisher was only repeating information previously published by another person.
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Question 12 of 20
12. Question
If publisher A is the original publisher of a defamatory allegation and publisher B repeats the defamatory allegation, a claimant must choose between suing publisher A or publisher B, but can’t sue both.
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A claimant can sue either or both of the publishers.
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Question 13 of 20
13. Question
To rely on a public interest defence, it is necessary to prove that the statement complained of is true.
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It is necessary to prove that the statement is substantially true for a truth defence, but not a public interest defence.
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Question 14 of 20
14. Question
The seriousness of the defamatory allegation is relevant to a public interest defence.
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The seriousness of a defamatory allegation is one of the factors the court takes into consideration with a public interest defence.
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Question 15 of 20
15. Question
Which one of the following is NOT a relevant consideration when running a defence of honest opinion?
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The court does not have to agree with an opinion for an honest opinion defence to succeed.
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Question 16 of 20
16. Question
An absolute privilege defence is defeated if the claimant can show that the defamation allegation was published maliciously, without belief in its truth.
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Absolute privilege is not defeated by proof of malice. Qualified privilege is defeated by malice.
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Question 17 of 20
17. Question
A fair, accurate and contemporaneous account of court proceedings is protected by absolute privilege.
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Absolute privilege does protect fair, accurate and contemporaneous accounts of court proceedings.
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Question 18 of 20
18. Question
A fair and accurate report of a public meeting is protected by qualified privilege.
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Qualified privilege does protect fair and accurate reports of public meetings.
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Question 19 of 20
19. Question
A website operator only has a defence to a defamation claim following a third party posting on its website if it has monitored all the postings and removed the defamatory material at its own initiative.
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A website operator has a defence if it removes a defamatory posting by a third party promptly after receiving notification of it.
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Question 20 of 20
20. Question
A claimant has 6 months from the date of publication to bring a claim for defamation.
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A claimant has 12 months from the date of publication to bring a claim.
