The interaction between defamation and privacy

Speaker: Professor David Rolph, University of Sydney

Join us in person or via Zoom: https://uqz.zoom.us/j/82350084406

Whether damages for reputational harm may be awarded in claims for misuse of private information is currently contentious in the United Kingdom.

It raises the proper scope of the causes of action in defamation and privacy. The difficult interaction between defamation and privacy is not confined to the issue of damages. Other issues have been identified, such as the proper interaction between approaches to injunctive relief for defamation and privacy.

This paper argues that the extent of the issues between defamation and privacy has not been properly acknowledged. It contends that these issues are not limited to remedies, and thus cannot be adequately addressed simply by modifying principles and practices relating to remedies for defamation and privacy. Rather, this paper argues that the issues arising from the interaction between defamation and privacy are more pervasive and require careful consideration.

About the Speaker 

David Rolph is a Professor at the University of Sydney Law School, specialising in media law. He is the author of two books and many book chapters and journal articles on all aspects of media law. From 2007 to 2013, Professor Rolph was the editor of the Sydney Law Review, one of Australia’s leading law journals. He currently serves on the editorial boards of the Media and Arts Law Review, the Communications Law Bulletin, Communications Law and the International Journal of the Semiotics of Law. Professor Rolph is also a regular columnist for the Gazette of Law and Journalism and a frequent media commentary on a range of media law issues.