What to do if you think someone has defamed you

Contributed by Susan Platis, Legal Aid ACT and Ben Aulich (https://aulich.com.au/) and current to June 2018.

Seek legal advice. Remember, the ‘published’ matter must cause the average person to think less of you. Personally hurtful or disagreeable comments will not necessarily be defamatory – for example, if the matter is substantially true or trivial. Possible action you can take may include asking the defaming party to take down the matter, reporting the defamation to the service provider or host (eg Facebook or Twitter) and asking them to remove it, sending a legal letter requesting a public correction, or commencing legal action.