Skip to content
Home » What Does A Civil Defamation Lawyer Do and Why Do You Need One?

What Does A Civil Defamation Lawyer Do and Why Do You Need One?

In law, defamation is the act of spreading false information about a person using written/oral means that has a negative effect on their reputation and name. In archaic times, the legal terms used were “libel” and “slander”. However, under current Australian law, they all fall under the legal umbrella of defamation. If you are ever placed in a situation where a false social media post or a public announcement has been made about you. Then you should immediately engage the services of a professional defamation lawyer. They will help you to file a defamation lawsuit and ensure that the matter reaches a favorable conclusion.

Here is some additional information about exactly how the defamation law works in Australia, which you can use to get some insight into the legal system of the country. Here is also some additional information that will tell you more about what civil defamation lawyers do and why they’re necessary.

Aspect One: The Imputation

Most often, someone defaming you will not say it outright, instead, they will say something that insinuates something bad about you. According to Australian law, this clear insinuation can be termed as an “imputation”. However, you cannot file a defamation claim if the insinuation (or imputation) does not exist for real.

Another thing that you need to file a defamation claim is that the imputation needs to be defamatory and maligning. The allegations or claims made by the person should be serious enough to cause considerable damage to your own reputation.

Aspect Two: The Identification

The next aspect after the imputation has been confirmed is the “identification”. Australian law needs the defamatory social media post, speech, etc. to explicitly identify the person that defamed. If you think that you have defamed, then your name has to be explicitly mentioned in the defamatory publication. At the very least, the publication should clearly insinuate that the person it was directed at was you.

Aspect Three: The Publication

The next step is one where your defamation lawyer will have to prove that the person who you claim published the defamatory material actually did publish it. Also, the publication must have been shared with at least one person other than the person it was actually aimed at in the beginning.

Aspect Four: Defences

The next aspect of defamation law is a series of legally protected reasons which can allow someone to publish potentially defamatory material. For example, if the information is the truth, or it is published in public interest, protected information, etc. If you believe that the defamatory publication has none of these defences, then your civil defamation lawsuit will stand in court. Cross-questioning and in-depth examination of all the material will eventually reveal what the truth actually is.

Final Aspect: Damages

Once the court has established that none of the defences valid when the matter of your defamation is at hand, then you will entitled to receive damages. For example, the losses suffered by someone who has falsely defamed are varying and difficult to quantify. For example, the defamatory claims made by you might have caused your relationships to end and might have led to your ostracization. You might also have suffered from tangible losses, such as the loss of your job, your home, opportunity for employment, etc. The judge will decide the compensation and damages that you entitled to, and you will be able to fully vindicated.

These were all the basic aspects of defamation law in Australia. And they written so that someone with zero legal experience could understand them.

Why do you need a defamation lawyer?

If you feel like you have defamed by someone’s publication. Then you should contact the offices of any of the professional defamation lawyers has to offer. The first thing that your lawyer will do is file a defamation lawyer against the person who has made a wrongful and public claim about you. Defamation cases usually take some time to settle, since they are extremely fact-driven. A lawyer will help you in the very important task of “building evidence”. Where they will conduct interviews, interrogations, analyze financial records, etc. All of this information will used to present your valuable perspective if the case goes to trial.

Something that you should know is that most civil defamation lawsuits settled out of court. This is a good thing because you do not have to deal with the extra trouble of a court case and you will also receive your just compensation.

Choose the best defamation lawyer

This is all the information you will need to understand why civil defamation lawyer is so important. If you have defamed, you should contact professional defamation lawyer immediately.