Latest news with #SLAPPs
Straits Times
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Press freedom stifled in Greece, reforms needed, says Human Rights Watch
FILE PHOTO: A man looks at newspaper headlines at a kiosk, a day after U.S. President Joe Biden announced that he is dropping his reelection bid, in Athens, Greece, July 22, 2024. REUTERS/Louiza Vradi/File Photo ATHENS - Press freedom has been stifled in Greece since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' conservative government came to power in 2019, with phone malware and aggressive lawsuits used against journalists, Human Rights Watch said in a report on Thursday. At least 15 journalists said they had at some point faced a lawsuit or legal threat for their reporting, the global rights group said in a 101-page report based on interviews with 34 journalists, academics, legal and media experts. It cited an annual index from Reporters without Borders giving Greece the lowest score in Europe. HRW said it is too easy under Greek law to restrict journalists through lawsuits know as SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation), which are filed against reporters based on claims of defamation or breach of EU data protection. "The pervasive and deliberate constraints on journalism in Greece are creating an environment in which critical reporting is stifled and self-censorship becomes the norm," said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at HRW. The government has publicly dismissed the allegations in the past and its spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis said on Wednesday that Greece has made progress on media freedom, as reflected in the Commission's annual report on rule of law. The topic of press freedom in Greece hit the headlines in 2022 when a wiretapping scandal was revealed after a journalist said his phone had been infected by spyware. Traces of that spyware were later found in dozens of phones. HRW urged authorities to draft an action plan to include ensuring public media independence, adopting anti-SLAPPs legislation and shielding journalists from surveillance. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Reuters
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Press freedom stifled in Greece, reforms needed, says Human Rights Watch
ATHENS, May 8 (Reuters) - Press freedom has been stifled in Greece since Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' conservative government came to power in 2019, with phone malware and aggressive lawsuits used against journalists, Human Rights Watch said in a report on Thursday. At least 15 journalists said they had at some point faced a lawsuit or legal threat for their reporting, the global rights group said in a 101-page report, opens new tab based on interviews with 34 journalists, academics, legal and media experts. It cited an annual index, opens new tab from Reporters without Borders giving Greece the lowest score in Europe. HRW said it is too easy under Greek law to restrict journalists through lawsuits know as SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation), which are filed against reporters based on claims of defamation or breach of EU data protection. "The pervasive and deliberate constraints on journalism in Greece are creating an environment in which critical reporting is stifled and self-censorship becomes the norm," said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at HRW. The government has publicly dismissed the allegations in the past and its spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis said on Wednesday that Greece has made progress on media freedom, as reflected in the Commission's annual report, opens new tab on rule of law. The topic of press freedom in Greece hit the headlines in 2022 when a wiretapping scandal was revealed after a journalist said his phone had been infected by spyware. Traces of that spyware were later found in dozens of phones. HRW urged authorities to draft an action plan to include ensuring public media independence, adopting anti-SLAPPs legislation and shielding journalists from surveillance.
RTÉ News
30-04-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Opposition challenge removal of juries in High Court defamation cases
Opposition parties have tabled a series of amendments opposing the removal of juries in High Court defamation actions. Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy told the Dáil that he is opposed to what is the centrepiece of the Government's Defamation Bill, and said that many in the legal profession shared his party's concerns. He proposed deleting the entire section dealing with the measure, and asked to know whether the current Minister for Justice, Jim O'Callaghan, plans to proceed with the bill as it is, as it had been prepared by his predecessor. Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said that juries play an important role and "ensure fairness", especially where "powerful entities" are concerned. Abolishing them "would make Ireland an outlier", he said, and insisted that there is no evidence that jury trials are more costly. Independent TD Catherine Connolly asked if the Government is "intent on ramming this through", and called on Minister O'Callaghan to show "moral courage" in dropping the measure. "I wouldn't like to be sitting in your position now and having to eat my words," she said, and quoted remarks the minister had made during an earlier stage of the bill - and before his appointment as minister - where he said: "the decision to abolish juries in the High Court would be short-sighted". Sherlock warns that bill is 'now out of date' Labour's Marie Sherlock expressed "serious concerns with key elements of this bill", and warned that it is "now out of date". She said that legal fees in defamation cases are higher than in any other civil action, and said the bill should be used to change that practice. The Defamation Bill was published last year, and aims to reduce costs for those seeking to defend their good name, including in relation to anonymous online trolls. Currently, this can only be done in the High Court. The bill would also introduce protection against Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, or "SLAPPs", which are often taken against individual journalists and are widely seen as a threat to press freedom. Minister O'Callaghan defended the measures in the bill, and said he would be opposing the various amendments tabled this evening. He noted the remarks of his which Deputy Connolly had quoted, and said that since then, there has been a General Election, during which his party's manifesto had promised to enact the bill. He said that being in a political party requires compromise, unlike being an independent, and rejected the suggestion that the removal of juries was a moral matter. The minister said that he is "bound by the terms of the Programme for Government."
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Texas legislation could weaken protections against frivolous lawsuits, warn free speech advocates
Free speech advocates in Texas are warning about new bills being considered in the state that they say would weaken protections for ordinary citizens and journalists against intimidating lawsuits. Lawsuits launched by powerful and deep-pocketed interests for the purpose of silencing and effectively harassing people exercising free speech rights are known as SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation). The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press describes SLAPPs as being filed "for intimidating and silencing criticism through expensive, baseless legal proceedings." The 2011 Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA) was passed as a way to empower defendants against such suits, advocates say, but now they say it's under attack in a threat to free speech across the political spectrum. The current law allows defendants who feel they are the victims of unfair SLAPP lawsuits to move to quickly dismiss them and be awarded attorneys' fees if successful. Hb 2988, which is set to proceed to a hearing on Wednesday in the state's House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence committee, is being criticized as a way to gut the TCPA. Tim Dillon Says Rebranding Of Core American Values As 'Right-wing' Is The 'Craziest Thing' He's Ever Heard "Any time someone exposes an uncomfortable truth or an opposing view, they can easily be a SLAPP victim, and these laws are the only things that give them power against the bullies in the courtroom," First Amendment attorney Laura Prather told Fox News Digital. Read On The Fox News App "It's a form of judicial harassment, where you're really just trying to lock somebody up in a lengthy legal battle because they expressed an opinion that you didn't like or they exposed wrongdoing that you didn't like," she added. In journalism, anti-SLAPP laws are meant to protect journalists from being besieged by defamation or other lawsuits as a means of intimidation, given the expense and difficulty involved in being wrapped up in lengthy court proceedings. Under the TCPA, a speaker who had been sued in a SLAPP case that was dismissed would receive attorney's fees and costs, and the law also allowed the court to award sanctions against the plaintiff. However, HB 2988 would make the awarding of attorney's fees discretionary instead of mandatory, and potentially put a defendant on the hook for the plaintiff's legal fees at a judge's discretion. The TCPA also includes an automatic stay of discovery, meaning defendants using its protections can avoid the arduous and intrusive process of exchanging information, documents and other materials before a trial. Sb 336, which has an identical companion bill in the House, HB 2459, would repeal that provision that stays discovery and trial in a SLAPP case "until such time that an appeals court has ruled, if asked to do so, on an anti-SLAPP motion," according to an article in the Institute for Free Speech. "If this bill passes, anyone targeted by a SLAPP lawsuit in Texas will have to battle in trial court and appeal court simultaneously," conservative commentator Ben Ferguson wrote about SB 336 in Human Events. "That's not just a procedural change—it's a death sentence for small media outlets, grassroots conservatives, and people like me who rely on that protection to survive the legal attacks hurled our way." True Crime Reporters Blocked Outside Courthouse Where Karen Read Is On Trial File First Amendment Lawsuit "The TCPA protects Texans across the ideological spectrum, from grassroots activists to government watchdogs to on-line reviewers," James Bopp, general counsel of the National Right to Life Committee, wrote last week. "Weakening the TCPA would embolden litigious corporations, political operatives, and deep-pocketed individuals to use the courts as a cudgel against their opponents. The impact would be devastating not just for those sued, but for the fundamental principles of free speech and open debate in Texas." Supporters of the proposals say the anti-SLAPP law can be used mischievously to gum up court proceedings and delay litigation on matters unrelated to free speech. The Texas Tribune reported on one example involving a contractor who filed an anti-SLAPP motion to halt a case brought by a developer over an apartment construction project. The contractor froze the case a month before trial even though the motion was eventually ruled to be frivolous, and the developer's lawyer said the delay cost his client millions. "This is a perfect example where a shield has become an abusive sword," Republican State Rep. Jeff Leach said during a hearing on similar legislation to reform the TCPA in 2023. Republican State Rep. Mano DeAyala, who is sponsoring HB 2988, told Fox News Digital on Monday that he brought the bill forward in an effort to keep the law from being abused by bad-faith actors who were "cluttering up" the courts with flimsy SLAPP motions. "I love the TCPA," he said. "I think it's a wonderful, wonderful procedural step … But there's no disincentive for filing the motion because there's no consequence for a bad motion. So until you find the consequence for a bad motion, you're going to still see it abused. This was my effort in trying to fix this to stop the abuses." DeAyala has accused critics of misrepresenting his bill's goals, responding to one on X that he's specifically trying to protect the TCPA. "The TCPA as intended is alive and well and especially the scenario in your post," he wrote last week to someone saying his bill would kill the TCPA. "The bill does not change that. It simply provides some protection to the little guy from the bullies who misuse and abuse the TCPA." Texas State Sen. Bryan Hughes, the sponsor of SB 336, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Click Here To Read More About Media And Culture Advocates for the TCPA say the protections therein cut across the political spectrum; a liberal journalist or activist organization would benefit just as much as a conservative one from being able to speak out with less fear of reprisal. They also reject the notion that the reform bills being considered would clean up court overcrowding, saying it could have the reverse effect. "They may not sue you to begin with," Prather told Fox News Digital, giving examples like restaurants suing patrons for bad online reviews. "It serves as a deterrent against those bullies that want to use the courtroom to silence you. It's a huge deterrent, and that's really important."Original article source: Texas legislation could weaken protections against frivolous lawsuits, warn free speech advocates
Fox News
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Texas legislation could weaken protections against frivolous lawsuits, warn free speech advocates
Free speech advocates in Texas are warning about new bills being considered in the state that they say would weaken protections for ordinary citizens and journalists against intimidating lawsuits. Lawsuits launched by powerful and deep-pocketed interests for the purpose of silencing and effectively harassing people exercising free speech rights are known as SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation). The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press describes SLAPPs as being filed "for intimidating and silencing criticism through expensive, baseless legal proceedings." The 2011 Texas Citizens Participation Act (TCPA) was passed as a way to empower defendants against such suits, advocates say, but now they say it's under attack in a threat to free speech across the political spectrum. The current law allows defendants who feel they are the victims of unfair SLAPP lawsuits to move to quickly dismiss them and be awarded attorneys' fees if successful. HB 2988, which is set to proceed to a hearing on Wednesday in the state's House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence committee, is being criticized as a way to gut the TCPA. "Any time someone exposes an uncomfortable truth or an opposing view, they can easily be a SLAPP victim, and these laws are the only things that give them power against the bullies in the courtroom," First Amendment attorney Laura Prather told Fox News Digital. "It's a form of judicial harassment, where you're really just trying to lock somebody up in a lengthy legal battle because they expressed an opinion that you didn't like or they exposed wrongdoing that you didn't like," she added. In journalism, anti-SLAPP laws are meant to protect journalists from being besieged by defamation or other lawsuits as a means of intimidation, given the expense and difficulty involved in being wrapped up in lengthy court proceedings. Under the TCPA, a speaker who had been sued in a SLAPP case that was dismissed would receive attorney's fees and costs, and the law also allowed the court to award sanctions against the plaintiff. However, HB 2988 would make the awarding of attorney's fees discretionary instead of mandatory, and potentially put a defendant on the hook for the plaintiff's legal fees at a judge's discretion. The TCPA also includes an automatic stay of discovery, meaning defendants using its protections can avoid the arduous and intrusive process of exchanging information, documents and other materials before a trial. SB 336, which has an identical companion bill in the House, HB 2459, would repeal that provision that stays discovery and trial in a SLAPP case "until such time that an appeals court has ruled, if asked to do so, on an anti-SLAPP motion," according to an article in the Institute for Free Speech. "If this bill passes, anyone targeted by a SLAPP lawsuit in Texas will have to battle in trial court and appeal court simultaneously," conservative commentator Ben Ferguson wrote about SB 336 in Human Events. "That's not just a procedural change—it's a death sentence for small media outlets, grassroots conservatives, and people like me who rely on that protection to survive the legal attacks hurled our way." "The TCPA protects Texans across the ideological spectrum, from grassroots activists to government watchdogs to on-line reviewers," James Bopp, general counsel of the National Right to Life Committee, wrote last week. "Weakening the TCPA would embolden litigious corporations, political operatives, and deep-pocketed individuals to use the courts as a cudgel against their opponents. The impact would be devastating not just for those sued, but for the fundamental principles of free speech and open debate in Texas." Supporters of the proposals say the anti-SLAPP law can be used mischievously to gum up court proceedings and delay litigation on matters unrelated to free speech. The Texas Tribune reported on one example involving a contractor who filed an anti-SLAPP motion to halt a case brought by a developer over an apartment construction project. The contractor froze the case a month before trial even though the motion was eventually ruled to be frivolous, and the developer's lawyer said the delay cost his client millions. "This is a perfect example where a shield has become an abusive sword," Republican State Rep. Jeff Leach said during a hearing on similar legislation to reform the TCPA in 2023. Republican State Rep. Mano DeAyala, who is sponsoring HB 2988, told Fox News Digital on Monday that he brought the bill forward in an effort to keep the law from being abused by bad-faith actors who were "cluttering up" the courts with flimsy SLAPP motions. "I love the TCPA," he said. "I think it's a wonderful, wonderful procedural step … But there's no disincentive for filing the motion because there's no consequence for a bad motion. So until you find the consequence for a bad motion, you're going to still see it abused. This was my effort in trying to fix this to stop the abuses." DeAyala has accused critics of misrepresenting his bill's goals, responding to one on X that he's specifically trying to protect the TCPA. "The TCPA as intended is alive and well and especially the scenario in your post," he wrote last week to someone saying his bill would kill the TCPA. "The bill does not change that. It simply provides some protection to the little guy from the bullies who misuse and abuse the TCPA." Texas State Sen. Bryan Hughes, the sponsor of SB 336, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Advocates for the TCPA say the protections therein cut across the political spectrum; a liberal journalist or activist organization would benefit just as much as a conservative one from being able to speak out with less fear of reprisal. They also reject the notion that the reform bills being considered would clean up court overcrowding, saying it could have the reverse effect. "They may not sue you to begin with," Prather told Fox News Digital, giving examples like restaurants suing patrons for bad online reviews. "It serves as a deterrent against those bullies that want to use the courtroom to silence you. It's a huge deterrent, and that's really important."
