The government said that the courts of England and Wales are to be given new powers to dismiss lawsuits. These are given by the people who claim themselves as wealthy which suppresses free speech.
Dominic Raab the secretary of justice announced some proposals on Wednesday. He has announced a three-stage test. This will help to tackle intimidatory legal actions at an early stage against the reporters and publishers by Slapps also known as the strategic lawsuits against public participation. It has been spotted that rich business people close to Putin are taking expensive court cases to the UK court. This is to suppress the criticism and to prevent investigations into their happenings.
The company has set some pointers to the test which suggests that it would first look into the case. It will analyze if the case is against journalistic activity in terms of public interest. An example could be taken from investigating financial misconduct either by a company or an individual. Secondly, it would next examine if there is any evidence of abuse of process. It would be like the applicant has sent a series of highly aggressive letters on an insignificant matter. Thirdly, it will see the realistic likelihood of the case whether it will succeed or not.
Anyone subjected to a Slapp can apply to the court to consider it for early discharge. The government also suggests cases that are to be properly defended. These cases can be created by the ministers under secondary legislation without the need to be approved by the parliament.
A case from the government’s reference can be taken into consideration. It was sought out against Tom Burgis who is the author of Kleptopia: How Dirty Money is Conquering the World. It was brought up by the Kazakh mining group which stands to be a high-profile case. It was thrown out by the high court.
Raab announces the rectification to validate the freedom of speech and end the abuse of the justice system. He also said to defend those who bravely give an insight on corruption. The government has mentioned that it would set the level of cost caps and design the scheme in the upcoming time. It will also look into the case for defamation law reform.
