Law of Libel Amendment Act 1895 (SA)

ANNO QUINQUACESIAIO OCTAVO ET QUINQUA-

GESIMO NON0

An Act to amend the Law of Libel.

[Assented to, December 20th, 1895.1

HEREAS i t is desirable to amend. the law of libel-Be it Preamble.

Australia., by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative

W therefore Enacted by the Governor of the Province of South

Council and House of Assembly of the said province, in this present

Parliament assembled, as follows:

1, This Act may bc called " The Law of Libel Amendment ~horttitle.

Act, 1895,"

other shares or interests therein, and no other person.

2, In this Act, unless inconsistent with the context- Interpretation.

The word newspaper " means any paper containing public

news, intelligence, or occurrences, or any remarks or observations thoreon, printed for sale and published in South Australia, periodically or in parts or numbcrs, at intervals not exceeding thirty-one days between the publi- cation of any two such papers, parts, or numbers:

The word G proprietor" means and includes as well the sole proprietor of any newspaper as also, in the case of a divided proprietorship, the persons who, as partners or otherwise, represent and are responsible for any share or interest in the newspaper as between themselves and the persons in like manner representing or responsible for the

2 58' & 59' VICTORIA?, No. 646.

The Law of Libel Amendmel~t Act.-1895.

N e w ~ ~ r * p o r t. a f	Q* A fair and accurate report	in any newspaper	of	proceedings
proceeding8 in Court

privileged.	publicly heard before any Court exercising judicial authority shall,
if publiehed contemporaneously with such proceedings, be privileged:
Provided that nothing in this section shall authorise the publication
of any blasphemous or indecent matter.
Newspaper re rte of

proceeding8 $Opublia	4. A fair and accurate report published in any newspaper of the
meeting and of cer-

tain bodies and per-	proceedings of a public meeting, or (except where neither the public
sons privileged,	nor any newspaper reporter is admitted) of any meeting of a Municipal Corporation or District Council, School Board of Advice, Board of ~ e i l t h, board or local authority formed or constituted under the provisions of any Act of Parliament, or of any committee appointed by any of the above-mentioned bodies, Royal Commissions, Select Committees of either Housc of Parliament, meetings of shareholders in any bank or incorporated company, and the publication at the requcst of any Government office or department, Minister of the Crown, or Cornmissioncr of Police, of any notice or report issued by them for the information of thc public, shall be privileged unless it shall be proved that such report or publication was published or made maliciously: Provided that nothing in this section shall authorise the publication of any blasphcmous or indeccnt matter: Provided also that the protection intended to be afforded hy this section shall not be available as a defencc in any proceedings if' it
shall be proved that the defendant has been requested to insert in
the newspaper in which the rel~ort or othcr publication complained of appeared a reasonable letter or statcnwnt by way of contradiction or explanation of such repel-t or other publication, and has refused or neglected to insert the same: Providcd further, that nothing in
this section contained shall be deemed or construed to limit or
abridge any privilege now by law existing, or to protect the publication of any matter not of public concern and the publication of which is not for the public: benefit.
For the purposes of this section, '' public meeting " shall mean any meeting bond $de and lawfully held for a lawful purpose, and for the furtherance or discussion of any matter of public concern,
whether the admission thereto be general or restricted.
Penalties on unfair

and inaccurate 5. If any unfair and inaccurate report of any matter mentioned

reports.	in sections 3 and 4 shall be published in any newspaper, every person responsible for the publication of such newspaper shall be guilty of
an offence against this Act, punishable on complaint of any person
aggrieved, and on summary conviction, by a fine not cxceeding Ten Pounds, or by imprisonment not exceeding thrcc calendar months: Provided that-

I. The punishment shall bc by fine only if it shall be proved that the defendant, so soon as practicable after being informed of the unfairness and inaccuracy of the report,

hzn published in the newspaper a correction thereof, giving to the correction at least equal prominence to that

which was given to the original report:

11. Any

58' & 59' VICTORIW, No. 646.

The Law of Libel Amendment Act.-1895.

rr. Any person laying any information under this section shall be

deemed to have waived all other remedies, both civil and criminal, against the same defendant in respect of the same report.

6. There shall be an appeal to the Local Court of Adelaide of Appeal.

Full Jurisdiction only from every conviction for an offence under this Act and from every order dismissing any information, and the proceedings on such appeal shall be conducted in manner appointed by law for appeals to Local Courts.

7. It shall be competent for a Judge or the Court, upon an appli- Conaolibtion of

tion by or on behalf of two or more defendants in actions to the same, or substantially thc same libel, brought by one and the same person, to make an order for the consolidation of such actions, so that they shall be tried together, and after such order has been made, and before the trial of said actions, the defendants in any new actions instituted in respect to the same, or substantially thc same libel, shall also be entitled to be joined in it conirnon action, upon a joint application being made, by such new defendants and the defendants in the actions already consolidated.

8. A Court of summary jurisdiction, upon the hearing of a charge Evidence may be

again S t a proprietor, publisher, or editor, or any person responsible ~~~~~~~~~ :it,"$

for the publication of a newspaper for a libel therein, may receive &c.

evidenceas to the publication behg for the public benefit, &nd as to

the mattcrs charged in the libel being true, and as to thc report

being fair and accurate and published without malice, and as to any

matter which under this or any other Act or otherwise might be

given in evidence by way of defence by the person charged on his

trial on indictment; and the Court, if of opinion after hearing such

evidence that there is a strong or probable presumption that the jury

at the trial would acquit the person charged, may dismiss the case.

9, At the trial of an action for a libel contained in any news- Power todefendant

paper, the defendant shall be at liberty to give in evidence in ~$~~c~e?$?ti.tion	mitigation of damages that the plaintiff has already recovered (or ofdarnqes.
has brought action for) damages, or has received or agreed to receive compensation in respect of a libel or libels to the same purport or effect as the libel for which such action has been brought.

I t shall not be necessary to set out in any indictment or other judicial proceeding instituted against the publisher of any obscene indictment or &her	Obscene matter need
not be set forth in

10.

libel the obscene passage, but it shall be sufficient to deposit the ju&cW?-edin~.

book, newspaper, or other documents containing the alleged libel

with the indictment or other judicial proceeding, together with par-

ticulars showing precisely by reference to pages, columns, and lines,

in what part of the book, newspaper, or other document the alleged

libel is to be found, and such particulars shall be deemed to form

part of the record, and all proceedings may be taken thereon as

though

4 58' & 59' VICTORIW, No. 646.

The Law of Libcl AmenJment Act.-1895.

though the passages complained of had been get out in the indict-

ment or judicial proceeding.

Impht to be pin&

facieevidenoeof pubs- 11. Upon the trial of an action or prosccution in respect of a li be1

, contained in a newspaper or book, the production of such n elmpaper

bMk~m~riodiM1. or book containing a printed statement that it is printed or pub-

lished by or for the defendant shall be primci faeie evidence of the

publication of the said ncwspaper or book by the defendant.

Evidence.

12. Upon the trial of an action or prosecution in respect of a libel

contained in a newspaper, after evidence sufficient in the opinion of

the Court has been given of the publication by the defendant of the

newspaper containing the libel, othcr prints purporting to be other numbem or parts of the same newspaper formerly or subsequently published, and containing a printed statement that they were published by or for the defendant, shall be admissible in evidence on either side without further proof of publication of them.

In the name and on behalf of Her Majesty, I hereby assent to

this Bill.

T. FOWELL BUXTON, Governor.

F -

Adelaide : By authorifq, C. E. Brus~ow, Government Printer, North-terrace.