Tuesday 3rd September

A1: 14.00-15.30 (Special session on conference theme)

Ewa Komorek (Trinity College Dublin):
The problem which will not go away. Recent developments in the EU approach to media pluralism issue

Dimitrios Doukas (Belfast):
The Sky is not the (Only) Limit – Sports Broadcasting without Frontiers and the European Court of Justice

A2: 16.00-17.30

Alan Durant (Middlesex):
The DPP’s Interim guidelines (December 2012) on prosecuting communications via social media

Damien McCallig (Galway):
Intrusion into private grief: regulating the reporting and presentation of deceased persons in the modern media

Paul Bernal (East Anglia):
Defamation on Twitter: a defence of ‘responsible tweeting’

Wednesday 4th September

A3: 9-10.30

Yik Chan Chin (Hong Kong Baptist) & Yanbin Lu (Nottingham):
Defenses of Freedom of Expression in Chinese Right to Reputation Lawsuits

Päivi Tiilikka (Helsinki):
Margin of appreciation and balancing-criteria in the practise of the ECtHR when balancing the freedom of expression and right to private life – is there any consistency?

Jason Bosland (Melbourne)
Defamation, Statutory Reform and the Protection of Opinion in Australia and the United Kingdom

A4: 14.00-15.30 (Leveson Inquiry session, chaired by Tom Gibbons, Manchester)

Paul Wragg (Leeds):
Freedom of the Press after Leveson

Judith Townend (City):
An uncertain climate: Defamation, privacy and the resolution of disputes outside the courtroom

Karen Mc Cullagh (East Anglia):
Regulation of Investigative Journalism post Leveson

via Preview: media & communications at SLS 2013 at Lex Ferenda.

Upcoming conference, 17th September 2013, Millennium Knightsbridge Hotel, London, UK

The ultimate review of key developments in the field of media law, featuring analysis of the impact of recent cases, such as: Leveson, Axel Springer/ Von Hannover (No.2) and Spelman v Express Newspapers.

Attendees will also benefit from discussion of the latest crucial issues, including:

• Contempt and reporting restrictions
• The post-Leveson landscape
• The defamation bill
• Privacy

For the agenda and to register go to:

http://www.ibclegal.com/FKW82385MJL

Quote VIP code FKW82385MJL and save 10%

The Guardian is attempting to overturn the Attorney General’s veto of the publication of Prince Charles’ correspondence with seven Government departments. An application for judicial review was heard over two days last week by the Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, with Lord Justice Davis and Mr Justice Globe.

Full Law and Media Round Up – 13 May 2013 at Inforrm’s Blog.

A system of arbitration is at the heart of Lord Justice Leveson’s recommendations, and different versions are included in the the government’s draft Royal Charter and the industry’s own proposals [PDF].

The suggestion is that an arbitration service could deal with libel and privacy complaints that would otherwise go to court.

Last minute amendments to the Crime and Courts bill (now Act) would allow for bloggers to opt into the regulatory arbitration system and receive costs benefits.

Additionally and separately, recommendations have also been made for Mediation and Early Resolution in defamation disputes.

However, there is very little solid data about the nature and quantity of legal claims made against the media, including small bloggers. Because the majority of libel claims, for example, are believed to be resolved out of court, there is no complete record of disputes.

In short, little is known about bloggers’ and journalists’ actual legal experiences and opinions.

In an effort to build a better picture and to help inform the development of new alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, I am launching a survey as the final part of my doctoral project at the Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism (CLJJ), City University London.

This questionnaire is open to all types of journalists and online writers who expect their readership to be predominantly based in England and/or Wales.

Please take part and share your experiences and encourage your colleagues and friends to participate as well.

All data will be collected anonymously with no identification of organisations or individuals.

The questionnaire can be found here:

• https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/medialawsurvey

Many thanks for your help! If you have any questions you can email me (judith.townend.1@city.ac.uk) or tweet me (@jtownend).

About the project

This survey is part of Judith Townend’s doctoral project at the Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism (CLJJ), City University London. The research project, which has been given ethical approval by the CLJJ, explores how journalists and online writers are affected by libel and privacy law, as well as other social and legal factors. It will draw attention to the issues faced by online writers and journalists, and help inform the development of resources in this area.

About this questionnaire

• The questionnaire is open to all types of journalists and online writers who expect their readership to be predominantly based in England and/or Wales.
• It should take between 10 and 30 minutes to complete, depending on your experiences and views. Some questions require an answer so you can be taken to the next relevant question.
• All data will be collected anonymously with no identification of organisations or individuals.
• The information you have submitted will included in a final report to be published in 2013/14, which may be used for future online and print publications.
• Please contact Judith Townend with any questions, or to obtain the final results.

Contact details:

Judith Townend, c/o Peter Aggar, Centre for Law, Justice and Journalism, City University London, Northampton Square, London EC1V 0HB, Tel: +44 (0)20 7040 8167

E-mail: judith.townend.1@city.ac.uk

IBC Legal’s 20th Anniversary Defamation & Privacy Conference

• the future of press regulation in the wake of Leveson and the phone hacking scandal
• the Defamation bill; strengths, weaknesses and what to expect
• CPD accredited

Speakers:

• Ian Hislop, Editor, Private Eye
• Max Mosley, Former President, FIA
• Lord Hunt of Wirral, Partner and Chairman, Financial Services Division, DAC Beachcroft LLP Solicitors

Chairman

• Andrew Caldecott QC, Head of Chambers, One Brick Court

Industry and Supporting Bodies

• Michael Harris, Index on Censorship
• Michelle Stanistreet, General Secretary, NUJ 
• Michael McManus, Director of Policy and Transition, PCC
• Sarah Jones, General Counsel, BBC 

QCs

• Hugh Tomlinson QC, Matrix Chambers
• Heather Rogers QC, Doughty Street Chambers
• Antony White QC, Matrix Chambers

Experts From Practice

• Susan Aslan, Partner, Aslan Charles Kousetta LLP
• Mark Lewis, Partner, Taylor Hampton Solicitors

Dates: 22 April 2013

Venue: Grange Tower Bridge Hotel, London, 45 Prescott Street, London, E1 8GP, United Kingdom

Book here, quoting VIP Code FKW82358MJEB for a 10% discount

• Part 1: January – April
• Part 2: May – August
• Part 3: September – December

And if you fancy a challenge and have been an avid follower of all things libel, privacy and Leveson over the past 12 months, check out the Inforrm Media Law Quiz of the Year. The reigning champion (two years in a row), Benjamin Pell, is quiz master.

Happy new year.

Ignorance is no defence, but given that Starmer suggested that a leading QC hadn’t thought about the sophistication of the issues (a charge which the lawyer in question is robustly defending – on Twitter, of course), what hope for the public at large?

I’ve been interested in the idea of public legal education (PLE) for social media users for a while (see my blogger project in 2010, for example) – initially around civil law (defamation, privacy, contempt) and more recently, criminal offences (Malicious Communications Act 1988; Communications Act 2003; Contempt of Court Act 1981).

The court order issue, mentioned on Radio 4 this morning, is the really interesting one for me. In 2010, I wrote about the lack of clarity around blogging and reporting restrictions; the situation hasn’t much improved since then, although people are probably more aware of the risks through increased media discussion.

Jon Harman (@colmmu) is also interested in this area, and has posted some quick thoughts on his Tumblr blog:

On one hand whilst “ignorance” is not a defence, do we have an education system currently capable of raising digital literacy and the laws that relate to it, do we need to do more in public legal education or even state education given that most people do not actively seek to break these laws, they are just unaware? When we had restricted systems of publishing we had mechanisms to filter and check, we had the basis of journalism training wedded to media and publishing laws – but that’s not possible in this new landscape

His suggestion? A legal Siri … Read in full here.

My full post Leveson & access to justice at the Justice Gap…

The libel trial in Mengi v Hermitage began on Wednesday 31 October 2012 before Bean J. The trial was also heard on 1 November 2012 and will resume on 6 November 2012.

Full round up at the Inforrm blog at this link…