Irish senators have been told they face a “last chance” to reform defamation law, as business leaders and civil society groups warn that the State’s new legislation is inadequate.
In a letter circulated to all senators today, Neil McDonnell, Chief Executive of ISME, said the Defamation (Amendment) Bill 2024, which is due before the Seanad this Wednesday, would leave small businesses and citizens exposed to abusive litigation.
McDonnell claimed that €30 million to €50 million changes hands each year in legal fees and settlements from defamation cases, describing the current system as one that “subordinates” citizens’ rights to the financial interests of a few.
“Never in the 103 years of Ireland’s independence have the rights of so many good citizens been subordinated to the avarice of a few,” he said.
“This Wednesday is your last chance to give Ireland a Defamation Act that is fit for purpose.”
He told senators that Ireland recorded 3,835 defamation cases over the past 16 years, 18 times the per capita volume seen in England and Wales, and argued that the vast majority target retailers rather than the media.
“The target of 99% of the defamation litigation in this country is not the media,” he said.
“It is small retailers, forecourt operators, restaurants and bars.”
He also warned that legal lobbyists were misleading lawmakers about the impact of reform. According to McDonnell, introducing a harm test would not deny access to justice, but would prevent vexatious lawsuits against shop staff asking customers to show a receipt.
“No one who is asked to show a till receipt will have a cause of civil action, as is the case elsewhere in Europe,” he said.
Data provided to senators showed that Ireland handled 396 defamation cases in 2022 alone, compared with 233 in England and Wales. Figures for 2019 recorded 308 cases in Ireland and 323 in England and Wales, despite the UK having a population more than 13 times larger.
Civil society groups have also criticised the Defamation Bill.
In July, 29 organisations, including the National Union of Journalists, the Index on Censorship and the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, described the legislation as a “missed opportunity” that fails to protect free expression and defend against Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs).
Jessica Ní Mhainín, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Index on Censorship, said at the time that the Bill “completely fails to offer meaningful protection” to those most often targeted with SLAPPs.
“Its complex and flawed provisions risk becoming tools only accessible to those with significant legal resources,” she said.
Dr. Francesca Farrington of the University of Aberdeen’s Anti SLAPP Research Hub argued that the government had failed to meet EU standards, warning that Ireland is obliged to transpose the bloc’s Anti SLAPP Directive by May 2026.
“If the directive is a floor, not a ceiling, this is somewhere in the basement,” she said.
Trinity College Dublin law lecturer Dr. Eoin O’Dell described the proposed measures as “grudging” and “impotent in practice,” while McDonnell said the reforms, as drafted, were “seriously defective.”
The Seanad debate comes after the Dáil passed the Defamation (Amendment) Bill on July 2nd by 83 votes to 61.
Senators have until 11:00 a.m. Monday morning to submit amendments before the vote on Wednesday.