Defamation and Online Harassment Laws in Ireland

The Defamation Act 2009 is the main law. Section 6 renames the old torts of libel and slander as one "tort of defamation": publishing, by any means, a defamatory statement about a person to at least one other person. The Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, most of which took effect on 1 March 2026, provides that High Court defamation actions brought on or after that date are tried by a judge without a jury. It also says that a statement about a company made on or after that date is only defamatory if it caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm to the company's reputation, which for a company trading for profit means serious financial loss.

Sources1Defamation Act 2009, Section 62Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, Section 4 (abolition of juries in High Court defamation actions)3Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026 (full text, incl. Section 6 on bodies corporate)4Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, commencement information (S.I. No. 61 of 2026)

Section 35 of the Defamation Act 2009 abolished the common law offenses of defamatory libel, seditious libel and obscene libel, so damaging someone's reputation is now dealt with through civil claims rather than prosecution. Abusive online conduct can still be a crime under separate harassment, stalking and harmful-communications laws.

Source5Defamation Act 2009, Section 35

A defamation action must be brought within one year, or within a longer period of up to two years if the court allows it. The court will only extend the deadline when the interests of justice require it and the harm to the claimant of refusing would significantly outweigh the harm to the defendant. The clock starts on the date the statement is first published, and for online content on the date it can first be viewed or heard on the internet. Since 1 March 2026, time spent on a complaint to the Press Council or on a broadcasting right-of-reply request is not counted toward that deadline.

Sources6Defamation Act 2009, Section 38 (amending Section 11 of the Statute of Limitations 1957)3Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, Section 21 (inserting Section 34L into the 2009 Act)4Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, commencement information (S.I. No. 61 of 2026)

Irish law does not keep the old per se categories. Under Section 6(5) of the 2009 Act, every defamation claim can proceed without proof of special damage, meaning the claimant does not have to show a specific financial loss. Companies are the exception for statements made on or after 1 March 2026: they must show serious harm to their reputation, and a company trading for profit must show serious financial loss.

Sources1Defamation Act 2009, Section 63Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026 (full text, Section 6)4Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, commencement information (S.I. No. 61 of 2026)

The Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026 adds a new Part 4A to the 2009 Act to give effect to the EU anti-SLAPP Directive (2024/1069) for defamation cases about public participation. It requires courts to deal quickly with applications for security for costs and to strike out manifestly unfounded claims, and lets defendants seek a declaration that proceedings are abusive, which can affect costs and lead to an award of damages. However, the official commencement record shows this Part has not yet been brought into force, and once it is, it will only apply to proceedings brought after that date.

Sources7Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, Section 19 (insertion of Part 4A)4Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, commencement information

A publisher can make a written offer to make amends, meaning an offer to publish a suitable correction and apology and to pay agreed or court-set compensation and costs; it must be made before the defense is filed (Section 22). For claims arising on or after 1 March 2026, the correction and apology must get the same or similar prominence as the original statement unless the claimant asks otherwise. An apology given the same or similar prominence as the original statement can reduce damages and is not treated as an admission of liability (Section 24). A person can also ask the Circuit Court for a declaratory order that a statement is false and defamatory where, among other conditions, the publisher failed or refused a request for an apology, correction or retraction (Section 28), and courts can order a correction (Section 30) or ban further publication (Section 33).

Sources8Defamation Act 2009, Section 229Defamation Act 2009, Section 2410Defamation Act 2009, Section 2811Defamation Act 2009, Section 3012Defamation Act 2009, Section 333Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, Sections 9, 14, 16 and 17 (amending Sections 22, 28, 30 and 33)4Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, commencement information (S.I. No. 61 of 2026)

The main statutory defenses are truth (the statement is true in all material respects), absolute privilege (for example statements in parliament or in court), qualified privilege, honest opinion, consent and innocent publication by someone who was not the author, editor or publisher. For causes of action arising on or after 1 March 2026, a new defense of fair publication on a matter of public interest applies where the statement was on a matter of public interest, the defendant reasonably believed publishing it was in the public interest, and it was published in good faith. The same Act abolished the common law Reynolds defense for those newer claims and added a defense for broadcasters of live programs.

Sources13Defamation Act 2009, Section 16 (truth)14Defamation Act 2009, Section 17 (absolute privilege)15Defamation Act 2009, Section 18 (qualified privilege)16Defamation Act 2009, Section 20 (honest opinion)17Defamation Act 2009 (full text, Sections 25 and 27)18Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, Section 11 (fair publication on a matter of public interest)3Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026 (full text, Sections 12 and 13)4Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, commencement information (S.I. No. 61 of 2026)

Section 10(2) of the Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997, as substituted in 2023, creates a stalking offense where someone's acts cause another person to fear violence or serious alarm or distress that substantially affects their daily life. The listed acts include monitoring, tracking or spying on a person, impersonating them, and making their electronic devices or systems function in a particular way without consent. The maximum penalty on indictment is 10 years in prison.

Source19Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997, Section 10 (revised, as substituted by the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2023, s. 23)

Harassment under Section 10(1) of the 1997 Act covers persistent acts that seriously interfere with someone's peace and privacy or cause alarm, distress or harm, and the listed acts expressly include communicating with or about a person. Separately, Section 4 of the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020 makes it an offense to send, distribute or publish a threatening or grossly offensive communication to or about someone with intent to cause harm, punishable by up to two years in prison.

Sources19Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997, Section 10 (revised)20Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020, Section 4

Disclosing private information about a person to others is one of the acts expressly listed in Section 10(3)(f) of the 1997 Act as capable of amounting to harassment or stalking. Publishing someone's private details online can therefore be prosecuted under those offenses when the other legal requirements are met.

Source19Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997, Section 10(3) (revised)

Section 2 of the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020 (known as Coco's Law) makes it a crime to distribute, publish or threaten to distribute or publish an intimate image of someone without consent, either intending to cause harm or being reckless about it, with up to seven years in prison. Intimate images include nude or sexual images and images of what is, or purports to be, a person's private areas. Section 3 separately criminalizes recording, distributing or publishing an intimate image without consent where it seriously interferes with the person's peace and privacy or causes alarm, distress or harm.

Sources21Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020 (full text, Sections 1 and 2)22Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Act 2020, Section 3