Q&A

Question: What sorts of things can be defamatory?

A defamatory comment is one that damages another’s reputation. There are a number of comments which can be taken to be defamatory, including those that attack someone’s personality, character, their beliefs, personal choices, mental stability and so on. Essentially something is defamatory if it is a malicious comment intended to harm someone’s reputation, and that does not have any grounding in fact. Written or spoken comments can be defamatory; it can be something published in print or online, or even in a personal email or social media comment.