Is England’s position as a honeypot for libel claimants under threat? Aidan Eardley reports
A recent claim by Cameron Diaz against the National Enquirer was the latest in a string of cases where libel proceedings have been brought in England over material which was principally disseminated abroad but which was also read or seen by a small number of people in this jurisdiction. In the Diaz case, the offending article had been briefly available to UK readers via the Enquirer’s website, but did not appear in the UK hard copy edition.
The English courts are often unable or unwilling to reject these claims. If the defendant publisher is domiciled in the EU or the European Economic Area, the courts must usually accept jurisdiction because they will be required to do so under the Judgments Regulation or the Brussels or Lugano Conventions. Even if the defendant is based outside Europe, the English courts will often allow the claim to proceed, provided there is evidence of a “substantial tort” here, a test which can often be satisfied
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