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DEFAMATION ACT 2005 - SECT 30A
Defence of scientific or academic peer review
30A Defence of scientific or academic peer review
(1) It is a defence to the publication of defamatory matter if the defendant
proves that-- (a) the matter was published in a scientific or academic journal
(whether published in electronic form or otherwise), and
(b) the matter
relates to a scientific or academic issue, and
(c) an independent review of
the matter's scientific or academic merit was carried out before the matter
was published in the journal by-- (i) the editor of the journal if the editor
has expertise in the scientific or academic issue concerned, or
(ii) one or
more persons with expertise in the scientific or academic issue concerned.
(2) If there is a defence to the publication of defamatory matter in a
scientific or academic journal because of subsection (1), there is also a
defence to the publication of any assessment of the matter in the same journal
if the defendant proves that-- (a) the assessment was written by one or more
of the persons who carried out the independent review of the matter, and
(b)
the assessment was written in the course of that review.
(3) It is a defence
to the publication of defamatory matter if the defendant proves that the
matter was contained in a fair summary of, or fair extract from, a matter or
assessment for which there is a defence because of subsection (1) or (2).
(4)
If a journal has more than one editor, a reference in this section to the
editor of the journal is to be read as a reference to the editor or editors
who were responsible for deciding to publish the matter concerned.
(5) A
defence established under this section is defeated if, and only if, the
plaintiff proves that the defamatory matter or assessment was not published
honestly for the information of the public or the advancement of education.
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