Defamation

It is a cliché that it takes 20 years to build a reputation and 5 minutes to ruin it but clichés are usually based on truth. Rumour, gossip and simple factual errors can have a calamitous effect on the reputation of an individual or business. The ubiquity of the internet has made it simple to spread a factually incorrect comment and the ripples, through adoption by bloggers and other authors, can mean a rumour is "out there" instantly and impossible to put back in the bottle.

Reputational damage can have a severe economic impact (e.g. on share price or earning capacity), it can affect whole industries (e.g. lobbying by industry bodies) and it can cause great distress. Defamatory information can be spread innocently or maliciously; it can be spread by journalists, bloggers, competitors, would-be investors and others. It often needs to be handled urgently and emphatically - preferably before publication.
 
Our service

We have a cross-border European team advising major clients on all defamation and privacy issues. We can therefore help you stop the dissemination of untrue or confidential information immediately, emphatically and before it causes irreparable damage to your business.

Libel, privacy and related issues are tricky and exceptionally sensitive matters. Our cross-border team of experts means that we are able to give the right advice quickly and effectively. Our offices in Brussels, London, Paris and three locations in Germany enable us to offer wide European coverage to US corporates.

We advise clients at every stage of the process, including:

• handling court proceedings on behalf of both Claimants and Defendants
• pre-publication vetting of potentially contentious material
• immediate post-publication advice to both Claimants and Defendants
• advising on urgent injunctive relief and obtaining it in appropriate circumstances
• advising innocent third party intermediaries, particularly websites

We have negotiated successfully with major media about content on the date of proposed publication. We have obtained pre-publication injunctions against national newspapers preventing the publication of defamatory statements and private information. We have also acted in one of the leading UK cases relating to alleged
defamation through an online discussion forum. Our team is geared to reacting fast enough to contain the problem.

Our Experience

We represent an international online marketplace in proceedings before the European Court of Justice concerning the lawfulness of requiring Internet Service Providers to filter information and also the related question as to the scope of injunctions imposed on such Internet Service Providers.

We acted for Belgium’s largest media company in relation to comments made on one of its online news websites regarding the conduct of players in the French national football team.

We acted on behalf of a US financial newswire in successfully obtaining what is thought to be the first declaration under the US SPEECH Act.

We acted for a well-known multinational company in successfully obtaining a superinjunction against one of the UK broadsheets.

We acted for a well known professional football player, in defamation proceedings in Belgium against various newspapers and news websites.

We have acted for a member of the royal family of a European Country in relation to defamation on a French web magazine and TV channel.

We advise a German website on which users may rate physicians, particularly with regards to defamation complaints brought by physicians.

We represented a Belgian newspaper in defamation proceedings brought by a professional football player. We also represented this same client in defamation proceedings brought by a professional athlete.

We acted for a well-known UK weight loss company in successfully changing the content of news stories in several national newspapers and online media. We are currently acting for this same client in two reputation management matters. One involves liaising with a terrestrial television provider regarding our client’s collaboration on a weight loss documentary; the other relates to monitoring and acting on press stories concerning the diet.

We acted for a major medical instruments manufacturer in relation to the misreporting of clinical trials in industry journals.

We continue to advise a UK Police Authority in relation to current High Court defamation proceedings in which it has an interest (following a substantial third party disclosure exercise last year).

We acted on behalf of a subsidiary of a French investment and industrial group in relation to defamatory comments published on the internet.

We are ranked in The Legal 500 for our work in defamation and privacy.