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This was forwarded to me by a colleague in the legal team who does our IPR stuff. I'm sure none of you have any potentially libellous material on your websites - but just in case... Jane ======================================================== Law-Now - CMS Cameron McKenna's Electronic Information Service www.law-now.com ========================================================= If you publish on the web, the risk of being sued for libel, wherever in the world your web content is accessed, may be greatly increased as a consequence of the decision of the Australian High Court last month. The defendant in this case was an American corporation which posted information on the web in the USA to be accessed by its subscribers, 98 per cent of whom are American. There are only 15 subscribers in Australia AND YET the Australian High Court decided the American corporation could be sued in Australia (as opposed to the USA), where the libel laws are far more favourable to claimants. The court placed only a few limitations on the ability to sue in Australia. Firstly, the offending webpage must have been published in Australia (i.e. downloaded and read) and, secondly, the claimant must have a reputation in Australia. This decision could be persuasive in other common law jurisdictions including England. If other courts follow the Australian approach, a claimant could sue for libel on the web wherever he or she downloaded the offending material, which could be anywhere in the world. If this happens, forum shopping is likely to be greatly increased. Foreign claimants may particularly look to sue in England, due to its strict defamation laws, if the English Courts adopt the decision of the Australian High Court. If you are subject to adverse comment on a webpage posted outside England, you may well have a cause of action in England if you can establish that it has been downloaded and read in England. If your company owns a website and you wish to limit your liability for libel, you should consider the following steps: * Ideally, a company should take steps to impose geographical restrictions on where its web content can be viewed. However, such restrictions are unlikely to be 100 percent effective and technically are likely to be difficult to achieve. One reasonable step to take is to seek to have the reader confirm the jurisdiction from which he is accessing the material before he is able to enter the site. * Vetting all website content to ensure it complies with libel laws around the world will simply be impractical. Therefore, we recommend that you focus on the law in key jurisdictions. Key jurisdictions will be any country with strict libel laws, such as England, in which an individual, corporation or body subject to the adverse comment has a reputation. Make sure that your website does not contain material that could be considered defamatory in these jurisdictions. For further information please contact Susan Barty by telephone on +44(0)20 7367 2542 or by e-mail at [log in to unmask] or Karen Marshall by telephone on +44(0)20 7367 2522 or by e-mail at [log in to unmask] ********************************************************* If you no longer wish to receive emails via Law-Now or if you have any views on how we can improve this service, please contact: Paul Beattie On-line services/Law-Now London [log in to unmask] Tel +44 20 7367 3487 ********************************************************* Confidentiality notice ====================== This information has been prepared for the clients and contacts of CMS Cameron McKenna. The information and opinions expressed in this document are not necessarily comprehensive and do not purport to give professional advice. If you would like specific advice please call your usual contact, at CMS Cameron McKenna. 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