Australian Broadcasting Corporation v Hanson

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) appealed to the High Court of Australia against a judgment of the Federal Court of Australia which had found it liable for defamation. The dispute concerned statements made by the ABC in a television broadcast that were alleged by Ms. Hanson to be defamatory of her.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the ABC had established the defence of qualified privilege in relation to the defamatory statements. This required the court to consider the nature of the duty or interest that would justify the publication of the statements and whether the recipient of the statements had a corresponding duty or interest to receive them.

The High Court, in allowing the appeal, held that the ABC had established the defence of qualified privilege. Gleeson CJ and McHugh J found that there was a sufficient public interest in the dissemination of information concerning Ms. Hanson's political activities and public statements, and that the recipients of the broadcast had a corresponding interest in receiving such information. Their Honours emphasised that the defence of qualified privilege is not defeated by the mere fact that the statements were critical or harsh, provided they were made honestly and without malice, and related to the subject matter of the privilege. The court concluded that the ABC had acted within the bounds of qualified privilege.