We must crack down on powerful figures using legal tactics to silence critics
3 min read
The United Kingdom has long been proud of its free media, rule of law and sophisticated financial markets.
The interdependent relationship between these has been maintained by a combination of regulation and the expectation of integrity. But all three are being steadily undermined by the deliberate abuse of UK law firms to harass and muzzle the exposure of public interest information.
The rich and powerful have long been using aggressive legal tactics, today known as Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (Slapps), to shut down legitimate criticism and stamp out public interest reporting. Journalists and others who try to lift the lid on wrongdoing find themselves living in constant fear of legal reprisals, with the dirty work usually undertaken by British lawyers in British courts on behalf of the wealthy at home and abroad.
Journalists and others who try to lift the lid on wrongdoing find themselves living in constant fear of legal reprisals
For those on the receiving end it is more than just a highly stressful experience. It involves huge amounts of their time, in some cases years, and bills for legal advice that are simply unaffordable.
Who then can blame newspaper editors for not publishing even the most well-researched or important pieces, when a preliminary hearing will set them back £50,000-£100,000 and, according to a leading defamation lawyer, a full libel trial could potentially cost 10 times that?
So much for a free press and the rule of law. But the impact goes further. Our financial markets are also distorted by these practices, as powerful business interests are able to manipulate markets by preventing information coming to light through harassing into silence those we rely on to investigate and report.
Everyone has a right to defend themselves before the law, but this does not apply where it is believed that litigation has no reasonable basis or is being pursued to harass others. Lawyers sign up to ethical standards, and many rightly keep away from Slapps, but the allure of lucrative contracts has caused too many to put their profits first.
This disease within our system has been raised repeatedly in both Houses. Amendments with vigorous cross-party support have been proposed, such as to the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill (currently in the House of Lords), for example, to enable an early-stage hearing to determine whether a case is genuine or vexatious.
Regrettably the government response has been to block and resist. Claims, as long ago as July last year, that the government is keen to act and will bring forward Slapps legislation "when parliamentary time allows" are not convincing.
The Economic Crime Bill is the logical opportunity to deal with this issue and the government has had more than enough time to give effect to its trumpeted concern – but has done nothing. A great shame and a wilfully missed opportunity to do the right thing at last.
Our free press, legal profession, rule of law and proper functioning of our markets, all things that we are rightly proud of, are being dragged through the mud by our enduring tolerance of Slapps.
Lord Cromwell, crossbench peer.
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