Blackstone’s Guide to the Defamation Act 2013 published

Guide to the new Act out now

Blackstone’s Guide to the Defamation Act 2013 is published by Oxford University Press today.

The Guide combines analysis of the new Act from experts at 5RB, with full text of the Act, its Explanatory Notes and extracts from the legislation amended by the 2013 Act.

The Defamation Act 2013 received Royal Assent on 25 April 2013 and is expected to come into force later in the year. The Act makes a number of changes to the law of defamation, including repealing the common law defences known as justification, fair comment and Reynolds privilege and replacing them with statutory defences. Measures to address so-called ‘libel tourism’, deal with anonymous publication online and protect peer-reviewed statements in academic or scientific journals are also included.

This Guide makes expert narrative available to practitioners, academics and others interested in these reforms to libel law in advance of the legislation coming into force. An introduction to the Act, including its passage through Parliament is provided, followed by an analysis of each section of the Act.

The Guide is co-edited by James Price QC and Felicity McMahon. The team of contributors, all 5RB barristers, is as follows: Mark Warby QC, Justin Rushbrooke QC, Iain Christie, Jonathan Barnes, William Bennett, Jacob Dean, Nigel Abbas, Richard Munden, Yuli Takatsuki, Patrick McCafferty.

Blackstone’s Guide to the Defamation Act 2013 is available now from publishers Oxford University Press and from legal booksellers.