16 July 2021
16 July 2021
The European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) supports a new policy paper by the UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition, titled “Countering Legal Intimidation and SLAPPs”.
It is comprised of:
– Background to the issue of legal intimidation and SLAPPs in the UK;
– Principles for mitigating the threat of legal intimidation;
– Approaches to countering legal intimidation and SLAPPs in the UK.
SLAPPs are abusive lawsuits pursued with the purpose of shutting down acts of public participation. These legal actions are directed against individuals and organisations – including journalists, media outlets, whistleblowers, activists, academics and NGOs – that speak out on matters of public interest. SLAPPs have been gaining wider recognition as an issue in several jurisdictions. However, there is also a significant concern regarding the ‘hidden problem’ of UK law firms sending threatening legal communication prior to any official filings, which can have a similar effect to SLAPPs. These legal threats are particularly effective when emanating from the UK, which is seen as a more plaintiff-friendly jurisdiction and where mounting a defence is a particularly costly and lengthy process.
1. To provide an overview of the problem in the UK context;
2. To identify the key principles for mitigating the threat of legal intimidation and SLAPPs; and
3. To form a starting point for legislative and regulatory initiatives to address this issue in the UK.
ARTICLE 19
Blueprint for Free Speech
Campaign for Freedom of Information in Scotland
Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice (affiliate)
The Daphne Foundation
English PEN
European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF)
Foreign Policy Centre
Good Law Project
Guardian News and Media Ltd
Index on Censorship
Justice for Journalists Foundation
National Union of Journalists
PEN International
Protect
Publish What You Pay UK (PWYPUK)
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
Rights and Accountability in Development (RAID)
Rory Peck Trust
Spotlight on Corruption
Transparency International – UK
Whistleblowing International Network (WIN)
Find the full policy paper as well as an explanatory note to approaches to Countering Legal Intimidation and SLAPPs in the UK below.
ECPMF urges President Zelensky to sign Draft Law 11321, ensuring greater transparency and access to parliamentary committee sessions for journalists and civil society in Ukraine.
READ MOREPress freedom organisations demand the release of Georgian journalist Mzia Amaglobeli and an end to the crackdown on media. Amaglobeli faces unjust charges and alleged mistreatment.
READ MOREDiscover why regulating Meta and other BigTech giants is essential to safeguard free speech and protect vulnerable communities in the EU.
READ MOREMedia freedom groups call on Kosovo’s PM Albin Kurti to reverse his party’s boycott of T7, TV Dukagjini, and Klan Kosova. Public accountability and media freedom must be upheld during elections.
READ MOREInternational press freedom groups express solidarity with Georgian journalists amid escalating violence and attacks on independent media during Tbilisi protests.
READ MOREMenckestr. 27
04155 Leipzig / Germany
Tel: +49 (0) 172 367 499 0
Fax: +49 (0) 341 562 96 63
E-Mail: info@ecpmf.eu
www.ecpmf.eu
© Copyright 2022 – ECPMF
European Centre for Press and Media Freedom
Cookie | Duration | Description |
---|---|---|
_mcid | 1 year | This is a Mailchimp functionality cookie used to evaluate the UI/UX interaction with its platform |
Cookie | Duration | Description |
---|---|---|
_ga | 2 years | The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors. |
_gat_gtag_UA_84831681_1 | 1 minute | Set by Google to distinguish users. |
_gid | 1 day | Installed by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously. |
ahoy_visit | 4 hours | This cookie is set by Powr for analytics measurement. |
ahoy_visitor | 2 years | This cookie is set by Powr for analytics measurement. |
CONSENT | 2 years | YouTube sets this cookie via embedded youtube-videos and registers anonymous statistical data. |
s_vi | 2 years | An Adobe Analytics cookie that uses a unique visitor ID time/date stamp to identify a unique vistor to the website. |
Cookie | Duration | Description |
---|---|---|
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE | 5 months 27 days | A cookie set by YouTube to measure bandwidth that determines whether the user gets the new or old player interface. |
YSC | session | YSC cookie is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos on Youtube pages. |
yt-remote-connected-devices | never | YouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video. |
yt-remote-device-id | never | YouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video. |
Cookie | Duration | Description |
---|---|---|
_reporter_session | session | No description |