Innocent publication meaning

On 2 August 2024, Ireland’s Government released the Defamation (Amendment) Bill (the ‘Bill’). It stems from recommendations set out in the 2022 Report of the Review of the Defamation Act 2009 and the 2023 Draft General Scheme of the Defamation (Amendment) Bill (the ‘General Scheme’). Although the Bill does not carry across every reform proposed in the General Scheme—for instance measures on the statute of limitations and jurisdictional forum shopping—it is anticipated that a number of meaningful updates will be made to the current defamation regime. The most notable of these are summarised below. Removal of Juries in High Court Defamation Actions The Bill would abolish juries in High Court defamation proceedings. The objective is to: minimise the risk of excessive damages being awarded to plaintiffs reduce delays and legal costs in proceedings shorten the duration of court hearings...

Introduction to patent proceedings In England and Wales, patent disputes sit within the civil jurisdiction of the courts, which apply the substantive statutory framework — the Patents Act 1977 (PA 1977), as amended — together with the common law, and decide cases in accordance with the procedural regime of England and Wales, as set out in the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). Actions for patent infringement are brought before the Patents Court or the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC), both of which are part of the Business and Property Courts of the High Court (Chancery Division). The courts of England and Wales may grant remedies in patent matters at the pre-litigation stage, during proceedings, or on final disposal, and such relief may stem from powers granted by PA 1977, the common law, or by procedural rules. In awarding remedies, the courts must also observe Directive 2004/48/EC on the enforcement of IP rights (the Enforcement Directive), to the extent that its requirements have been absorbed into the case law of the...

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note is no longer active or updated. From 6 April 2025, the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUTR 2008), SI 2008/1277 were revoked and superseded by the Digital Market, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCCA 2024). Nonetheless, CPUTR 2008, SI 2008/1277 continues to apply to any conduct that occurred before 6 April 2025. For details on unfair commercial practices under DMCCA 2024, see Practice Note: Unfair commercial practices offences under DMCCA 2024. The regulatory regime under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 CPUTR 2008, SI 2008/1277 took effect on 26 May 2008. It prohibits traders across all sectors from engaging in unfair commercial practices towards consumers that hinder free and properly informed purchasing choices. The regime applies to business-to-consumer transactions and captures behaviour before, during, and after a contract is made. It also extends to business-to-business practices that are closely linked to consumers. For example, a business supplying food products to a supermarket must ensure its labelling complies with CPUTR 2008,...

The legal requirements of hallmarking Under the Hallmarking Act 1973 (HA 1973), the sale of goods marketed as 'gold', 'silver', 'platinum' or 'palladium' is lawfully regulated. A hallmark comprises a set of symbols stamped on articles of these precious metals, confirming independent assessment by an Assay Office. It is a guarantee that the article complies with the law. This assures the piece meets statutory thresholds for precious metal content, called 'fineness'—the proportion of precious metal to alloy in the item, expressed in parts per thousand. Items claimed to be wholly or partly gold, silver, platinum or palladium must carry the correct hallmarks prior to supply or any offer to supply, before sale. Save for limited exemptions, goods without hallmarks must not be described as wholly or partly made from gold, silver, platinum or palladium. Premises where articles of gold, silver or platinum are made, supplied, sold or exchanged etc. must display an approved explanatory hallmarking notice for customers to see. Such approved notices are issued by the British Hallmarking...