2012 Symposium

First Amendment Challenges in the Digital Age

Audio recordings of the panels are now available at the above link

Twitter Libel Actions in Three Jurisdictions – Courtney Love, Chris Cairns, Joseph Meggitt

19
02
2012

Three libel actions involving Twitter have been in the news around the world this week.  The first is in the USA and involves Courtney Love (again).  The second is due to be the first twitter libel trial – in England in two weeks’ time.  Finally, in Australia there is news of a claim against Twitter Inc itself as the publisher of a defamatory tweet. 

Times contempt challenge thrown out in Strasbourg – Adam Wagner

14
02
2012

In the case of Michael Seckerson v United Kingdom (App Nos. 32844/10 and 33510/10) the European Court of Human Rights rejected as “inadmissible” Times Newspapers’ challenge to its 2009 conviction for contempt of court.  The decision, which was made by seven judges, is a good example of an early stage “strike-out” by the Court which is nonetheless a substantial, reasoned decision

This case demonstrates that prosecution for contempt for breach of the secrecy of the jury room is not incompatible with Article 10.

Data Protection for the 21st Century: The EU Reform Proposals

February 22nd, 2012

Timothy Pitt-Payne QC and Robin Hopkins spoke at the 11KBW Information law seminar; Data Protection for the 21st Century: The EU Reform Proposals on 21st February 2012. The papers from this seminar are now available to download – click here

The recent decision of Judge Colin Birss QC in Temple Island Collections Ltd v New English Teas Ltd & another [2012] EWPCC 1 has attracted a good deal of attention on the blogosphere and beyond in the way in which it has approached the scope of copyright protection which the creator of a photograph or digitally manipulated image might now expect to enjoy in the courts of England and Wales. Andy Johnstone authored a guest-note on this weblog here, while Catherine Lee provided this analysis for the IPKat and Rosie Burbidge has since posted her view of the ruling on Art & Artifice. Further comments come from ACID, NIPCLAW and beyond.

In November of 1958, John Steinbeck — the renowned author of, most notably, The Grapes of Wrath, East of Eden, and Of Mice and Men — received a letter from his eldest son, Thom, who was attending boarding school. In it, the teenager spoke of Susan, a young girl with whom he believed he had fallen in love.

Steinbeck replied the same day. His beautiful letter of advice can be enjoyed below.

A belief in free speech means absolutely nothing unless you exercise it to defend those with whom you violently disagree. Any moderate citizen can, without too great a strain, tolerate somebody at the other end of the democratic spectrum. The true test of such commitment comes when the reasonable person (of course, almost all of us think ourselves reasonable) runs up against a genuine spittle-flecked loon arguing for some school of totalitarianism. You find him or her dangerous? What they are saying offends your inner core? Big deal.