Earlier this month, NSW became the first jurisdiction in Australia to legislate far-reaching reforms to our nation’s defamation laws, which reflect the significant developments in digital and social media communication that have taken place since the Modern Defamation Provisions were introduced in 2005.

The overhaul of Australia’s defamation laws comes in the wake of a series of high-profile cases sparking debate about the need to balance freedom of speech with the right to protect one’s reputation. The reforms incorporated in the Defamation Amendment Act 2020 include a public interest defence for journalists, a defence for peer-reviewed material in scientific and academic journals, and a "serious harm" threshold for defamation claims aimed at keeping trivial matters out of court.

I am pleased to announce that NSW Attorney General Mark Speakman SC, who led the national reform process, will speak about the NSW reforms at the Law Society’s next online Thought Leadership event, “Defamation reform – in pursuit of balance”, on Monday 31 August. Joining Mr Speakman on the webcast will be two leading experts on defamation law, Jim Micallef and Sophie Dawson.

In the meantime, it is with much anticipation that we await this Wednesday’s major event, “Online courts and the future of justice”, to be presented by Professor Richard Susskind OBE.

Given that Professor Susskind is the world’s most cited author on the future of legal services, and in light of the current environment that our courts and tribunals are operating within, it’s not surprising that the event is well subscribed. The webcast presentation is a valuable opportunity to hear Professor Susskind discuss the advantages and limitations of remote courts, the impact on access to justice, and what the future could hold for judges and litigators. Professor Susskind’s webcast presentation will also include an online Q&A session for participants.

In a similar vein, the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration (AIJA) in collaboration with the Law Society of NSW, is hosting an Online Conference Series on “Providing Justice in an Online World”. The AIJA Online Conference Series will be held over five weekly sessions. The first session, “What have we learnt that can improve the use of technology for court and tribunal hearings?”, will be held on Wednesday 26 August 2020 at 5.30pm. Access the full program and register here.

Richard Harvey, President, Law Society of NSW

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