Policy background SLAPPs
Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) are legal actions typically brought by corporations or individuals with the intention of harassing, intimidating and financially or psychologically exhausting opponents via improper use of the legal system. SLAPPs are typically framed as defamation cases, but they can occur across a broad spectrum of issues including data protection, privacy and environmental law. It is estimated that the majority of SLAPPs are related to economic crime.
	SLAPPs present a growing problem as claimants explore new ways to suppress legitimate reporting, by abuses of process that are intended to be costly and time-consuming for defendants. Broadly, SLAPPs fundamentally undermine freedom of speech and the rule of law.
	The Ministry of Justice launched a Call for Evidence (CfE) in Spring 2022, and committed to take action to deliver on our SLAPPs reforms. In light of that evidence, the provisions in the Act aim to ensure that misconduct and improper use of the legal system to suppress legitimate reporting on matters of public interest related to combating economic crime will be prevented. The Act will therefore strengthen the legal framework to ensure that those reporting on such matters are free from the intimidation and financial burden of that improper litigation and that, as a result, those responsible for wrongdoing can be held accountable.
	The Act equips the courts to deal with SLAPPs robustly in England and Wales by defining SLAPP claims in such a way as to be able to identify them at an early stage in the proceedings and providing the courts with new powers to strike them out where they are less likely than not to succeed at trial. The Act also provides protection for defendants against costs where a SLAPP claim is not struck out early. These measures therefore strike a careful balance between protecting freedom of speech and access to justice, and will therefore help to uphold the integrity of the legal system, discourage the use of SLAPPs and restrict their harmful impact.