Libel Tourism

Libel tourism describes libel cases being brought in the jurisdiction offering the best chance of success rather than perhaps the most appropriate jurisdiction; that is, where the offense actually occurs. Libel tourism most frequently occurs in England and Wales where the courts are considered to be tougher on libel, particularly criminal libel, which is sometimes used to protect a person’s reputation, containing similar elements as the tort of defamation (which acts to redress damage to a person’s reputation). Any words used must have the effect of lowering a person’s reputation in the eyes of right-thinking members of society, generally by exposing the victim to contempt, hatred, or ridicule.

However, libel tourism is not exclusively a UK issue. It has relevance in the age of globalised mass ...