释义 |
absolute privilege The defence that a statement cannot be made the subject of an action for defamation because it was made in Parliament, in papers ordered to be published by either House of Parliament, in judicial proceedings or a fair and accurate contemporaneous report of judicial proceedings, or in an official communication between certain officers of State. Under the Defamation Act 1996, the defence was extended to reports of proceedings of the European Court of Justice. The Defamation Act 2013 now applies it to all courts of other countries and territories outside the UK and to certain international courts and tribunals. Under certain circumstances defined by the 1996 Act the absolute privilege accorded to statements or proceedings in Parliament may be waived (waiver of privilege) to permit evidence to be adduced in an action for defamation. Compare qualified privilege. |