Defamation law · Australia
Online defamation, reputation management, concerns notices, and the 2021 reforms that changed the threshold for serious harm. Find verified defamation lawyers and understand the new landscape.
What defamation law covers
Australian defamation law was substantially reformed in 2021, with significant additional reforms still being implemented in 2026. The framework has shifted to focus on serious harm.
Online
Defamatory posts on social media, review sites, forums, and blogs. The most common form of modern defamation matter. Platform liability remains contested following Voller and related cases.
Review sites
Anonymous or named negative reviews on Google, ProductReview, RateMDs etc. Recovery often involves combined defamation and injurious-falsehood pathways plus platform notification.
Media
Print, broadcast, and online newspaper defamation. Subject to the public-interest defence and the qualified privilege defence as reformed in 2021.
Concerns notice
The mandatory pre-action concerns notice introduced in the 2021 reforms. A defamation proceeding cannot generally be commenced without first issuing one.
Take-down
Injunctions or notifications to platforms to remove defamatory content. Often the priority remedy — restoring reputation matters more than damages for many clients.
Reform impact
Since 1 July 2021, plaintiffs must prove the publication caused (or is likely to cause) serious harm to reputation. Trivial defamation no longer attracts a remedy.
Typical cost
Indicative range
$8,000 to $250,000+
Defamation matters can resolve quickly through a concerns notice and apology, or run for years through a full trial. The cost spread reflects this.
Concerns notice + early settlement: $4,000–$15,000. Pleaded matter + mediation: $25,000–$80,000. Defended trial: $80,000–$400,000+. Plus disbursements and counsel.
Defamation is high-risk litigation. Costs can exceed any damages awarded. Discuss the costs-benefit assessment carefully with your lawyer.
How a matter typically unfolds
The 2021 reforms introduced a mandatory pre-action stage. The framework below applies to most defamation claims.
Capture screenshots, archive copies, and download originals. The 1-year limitation period runs from publication.
Send the mandatory concerns notice setting out the imputations, the harm caused, and the remedy sought. Recipient has 14 days to respond with an offer to make amends.
Often involves apology, correction, take-down, and an amount for damages. If reasonable and not accepted, can be used as a costs and damages defence later.
If unresolved after 28 days from concerns notice, proceedings can be filed in the District or Supreme Court. Statement of claim must plead serious harm.
Common defences: truth, honest opinion, qualified privilege, public interest. Defendants often plead multiple defences in the alternative.
Court-ordered mediation is usual. If unresolved, trial by judge alone (jury trials in defamation were largely abolished). Damages capped at the statutory maximum for non-economic loss.
Frequently asked
A publication is defamatory if it conveys an imputation that lowers the plaintiff in the eyes of reasonable members of the community. Since 2021 you must also prove serious harm to reputation. Mere insults, opinions clearly identified as such, and trivial criticisms usually don’t meet the threshold.
You can sue the platform or seek a preliminary discovery order to identify the publisher. Following Voller and the 2024 reforms, platform liability is increasingly contested but not eliminated. The first practical step is usually a concerns notice to the platform and the suspected publisher.
Like other civil litigation, the loser usually pays the winner’s costs on a party-party basis. But damages in defamation are capped, and many small wins are pyrrhic — the costs exceed the damages. Reasonableness of pre-action conduct can substantially affect the costs order.
One year from the date of publication (s14 of the relevant Limitation Act). Extensions of up to 3 years are possible for good reason but require court leave. Don’t wait.
Verified defamation specialists across Australia. Most offer a fixed-fee initial advice before drafting any concerns notice.
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