A&L Goodbody

Lobbying Organisation A&L Goodbody

Date published 17 Sep, 2020

Relevant Matter Legislation

Public Policy Area Justice and Equality

Period 1 May, 2020 to 31 Aug, 2020

Specific Details Seeking amendment of the Defamation Act 2009 and reform of defamation law

Intended results To remove use of juries from defamation cases so as to prevent excessive damages awards by juries that are subsequently significantly reduced on appeal and thus avoid protracted and unnecessary litigation, thereby making the defamation system more accessible, efficient and fairer both for plaintiffs and defendants To safeguard the role of the media and the important work of investigative journalists

Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity Kenan Furlong

Did any Designated Public Official(DPO) or former Designated Public Official(DPO) carry out lobbying activities on your behalf in relation to this return? You must include yourself, and answer Yes, if you are a current DPO or a DPO at any time in the past. (What is a Designated Public Official?) No

Did you manage or direct a grassroots campaign? No

Was this lobbying done on behalf of a client? No

Lobbying activity

The following activities occurred for this specific Subject Matter Area.

Letter (1)

A letter was sent to the Minister for Justice and Equality (by post and by email) i. requesting a meeting with the Minister for Justice / a colleague to discuss reform of the Defamation Act 2009; ii. Enclosing an article, written by Kenan Furlong of A&L Goodbody, titled 'Time to say goodbye: why Ireland should remove juries from defamation cases', published in The Currency on 10 July 2020 and on A&L Goodbody's website - https://www.algoodbody.com/insights-publications/time-to-say-goodbye-why-ireland-should-remove-juries-from-defamation-cases

Designated public officials lobbied

The following DPOs were lobbied during this return period on this specific Subject Matter Area. These DPOs were involved in at least one of the Lobbying Activities listed above, but not necessarily all of them. As returns are specific to a Subject Matter Area the above Lobbying Activities may be associated with multiple returns.

Helen McEntee Minister (Department of Justice)