Anti-SLAPP Conference 2024 | Dublin

19 Jun 24

About this event

Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) are abusive legal threats and actions brought by powerful and wealthy people against public watchdogs with the aim of silencing them.  Due to the high cost of defending a case, public watchdogs can effectively be silenced even when what they have said is accurate and in the public interest. When SLAPPs successfully drive information out of the public domain, it is much more difficult to hold power to account. SLAPPs have proliferated globally in recent years and Ireland has previously been identified as a jurisdiction of concern.

The Council of Europe and the European Union have, this year, introduced measures aimed at countering SLAPPs. All EU Member States now have until May 2026 to transpose the EU Anti-SLAPP Directive into national legislation. The Council of Europe’s non-binding Recommendation, adopted in April, should help ensure that Member States enact the most robust anti-SLAPP legislation possible, while also providing a roadmap for those jurisdictions – like Northern Ireland – that are not subject to the EU Directive.

At this full-day conference, attendees will hear from a wide-range of stakeholders, including campaigners, academics, journalists, lawyers and politicians from across the island, as we discuss how SLAPPs have manifested themselves in an Irish context. The full line-up of speakers will be announced in due course. Subscribe our newsletter to stay informed.

The event is organised by Index on Censorship in association with the Digital Repository of Ireland, TCD Law School, the Council of Europe’s Safety of Journalists’ Platform, the Coalition against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE), and the UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition.

Book your free place here

Scottish Anti-SLAPP Summit

08 Jan 24

This conference hosted by Index on Censorship, the University of Glasgow and Justice for Journalists Foundation will bring together lawyers, journalists, experts and campaigners to learn more about the SLAPPs landscape in Scotland, identify the gaps in Scots Law and explore what we can do to protect Scotland’s courts from abuse.

It will also feature a keynote presentation from Paul Radu, the co-founder of the Organised Crime & Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which has reported widely on the impact of corruption and abuses of power on democracies across the globe. As a result, they have been threatened numerous times, including in London, where Radu himself had to defend himself against a sitting Azerbaijani MP. He will talk about how this has impacted his team’s work, as well as the innovative ways public watchdogs can protect themselves.

Also joining us will also be a number of people targeted in Scotland, including an anti-fish farm campaigner who has been prevented from scrutinising fish farms off the coast of Scotland by an interdict secured by a multinational company and a former MSP who was sued for writing about the claims made by a conservation project.

We hope you will join this session that looks to ensure Scotland has the protections in place to ensure all public interest speech is protected. Only by moving against SLAPPs can we ensure Scotland values and protects free expression for everyone who speaks out.

Book your free ticket here.