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| http://technology.guardian.co.uk/ne...1674047,00.html
A 156-year-old pillar of libel law prompted by an eccentric German duke which
has allowed wealthy foreigners to sue in English courts could be declared
obsolete, in a move that would have profound implications for the future of the
internet.
The Department of Constitutional Affairs wants to re-examine the judgment, which
set the precedent after it ruled in favour of the Duke of Brunswick in 1849. The
department is to launch a public consultation into whether the judgment is still
relevant, following sustained criticism from lawyers and judges.
The ruling, Duke of Brunswick v Harmer, remains a bedrock of England's archaic
defamation laws. It says that each individual publication of a libel gives rise
to a separate cause of action - the so-called multiple publication rule.
Translated onto the global reach of the internet, this has had what lawyers call
"chilling effects" on freedom of expression. Under it, an individual who
downloads something he or she regards as libellous can in principle sue a
publication based anywhere in the world. The legal action can be taken either in
his or her own country or in England.
http://technology.guardian.co.uk/ne...1674047,00.html
How very interesting! I do believe I am going to get me a lawyer next week. I
already know where Kali, works and where Hammy lives. Can anybody give me
Liceman's address?
The article continues:
For the celebrities and overseas businessmen who sue through the high court in
the Strand, all they have to show is that the story had more than a minimal
circulation and that they had connections to England and a reputation to defend
there. With defamation actions generally on the decline, they have provided new
rich pickings for the libel bar as suits from afar afield as Russia and Saudi
Arabia have been prosecuted in London.
So if a certain Monkey Boy Lawyer, whose life may have been "altered", because
he listened to libellous stories on the internet, wanted recompensation for his
troubles, he maybe ought to start an action in the U.K. courts very quickly.
HTH
Lord Cerne Abbas
Humpty Dumpty Bush fell off the Iraq wall.
Humpty Dumpty Bush had a big fall.
All his spin doctors and all the President's men
couldn't put Humpty Dumpty Bush together again.
http://www.veloceraptor.free-online.co.uk/identity.html
http://www.veloceraptor.free-online.co.uk/mylinks.html
http://www.insurgent.org/~jhd/kookway.htm
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