Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

High Court (E&W) confirms trade unions may sue in libel under TULR(C)A 1992 s 10, rejecting EETPU v Times: Prospect v Evans [2024] EWHC 1533 (KB)

Published on: 01 July 2024

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Article summary

Prospect v Evans [2024] EWHC 1533 (KB)

What are the practical implications of this case?

Since the decision in Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunication and Plumbing Union v Times Newspapers Ltd [1980] 1 QB 585 concluded that trade unions could not sue for libel, doubts persisted about whether it was rightly decided. This judgment clarifies that trade unions can, in fact, bring defamation proceedings. It remains the position that certain organisations, including local authorities and unincorporated bodies, are still unable to pursue a defamation action.

What was the background?

Prospect, a trade union, issued claims for defamation and malicious falsehood against Mr Andrew Evans (E), who was a member at the time of publication but is now a former member. E sought a declaration that the court lacked jurisdiction to hear the defamation claim on the basis that the claimant union had no standing to sue in defamation. In Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunication and Plumbing Union v Times Newspapers Ltd [1980] 1 QB 585, the court held that the tort of libel must be founded on the possession of a personality capable of being libelled. Section 2 (1) of the Trade Union and Labour Relations Act...

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