Single publication rule
8 Single publication rule
(1) This section applies if a person—
- (a) publishes a statement to the public (“the first publication”), and
- (b) subsequently publishes (whether or not to the public) that statement or a statement which is substantially the same.
(2) In subsection (1) “publication to the public” includes publication to a section of the public.
(3) For the purposes of section 4A of the Limitation Act 1980 (time limit for actions for defamation etc) any cause of action against the person for defamation in respect of the subsequent publication is to be treated as having accrued on the date of the first publication.
(4) This section does not apply in relation to the subsequent publication if the manner of that publication is materially different from the manner of the first publication.
(5) In determining whether the manner of a subsequent publication is materially different from the manner of the first publication, the matters to which the court may have regard include (amongst other matters)—
- (a) the level of prominence that a statement is given;
- (b) the extent of the subsequent publication.
(6) Where this section applies—
- (a) it does not affect the court’s discretion under section 32A of the Limitation Act 1980 (discretionary exclusion of time limit for actions for defamation etc), and
- (b) the reference in subsection (1)(a) of that section to the operation of section 4A of that Act is a reference to the operation of section 4A together with this section.
Jurisdiction
9 Action against a person not domiciled in the UK or a Member State etc
(1) This section applies to an action for defamation against a person who is not domiciled—
- (a) in the United Kingdom;
- (b) in another Member State; or
- (c) in a state which is for the time being a contracting party to the Lugano Convention.
(2) A court does not have jurisdiction to hear and determine an action to which this section applies unless the court is satisfied that, of all the places in which the statement complained of has been published, England and Wales is clearly the most appropriate place in which to bring an action in respect of the statement.
(3) The references in subsection (2) to the statement complained of include references to any statement which conveys the same, or substantially the same, imputation as the statement complained of.
