Slain Daphne Caruana Galizia was the most targeted journalist by vexatious libel lawsuits in Europe, according to a study of SLAPPs filed across the continent over 10 years.

The report, by the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe (CASE), notes how the shock of Caruana Galizia’s assassination led to increased international attention to Malta, which resulted in some amendments to the laws on defamation and press freedom.

“Nonetheless, the culture of filing legal complaints to silence criticism is still prevalent in Malta. At the start of 2022, three defamation cases were filed by public officials against newsrooms and journalists.”

SLAPPs, which are on the increase in Europe, abuse existing laws to intimidate and harass those who speak out and actively participate in the civil space, according to CASE.

SLAPPs do not necessarily have to be filed in the country of the defendant: in 2020, legal proceedings in Bulgaria were directed at Times of Malta, and separately at blogger Manuel Delia. These were not included in CASE's sample.

Highest number of SLAPPs per capita

CASE noted that its study is not an exhaustive survey of SLAPP cases across the continent. Data was gathered through desk research, interviews, and snowball sampling, providing "only a snapshot of the issue of SLAPPs in Europe".

The study surveyed 570 legal cases that qualified as SLAPPs which were filed between 2010 and 2021 in 29 European jurisdictions. Of these, 35 were filed against Caruana Galizia, followed by 19 against Polish publisher Agora SA.

A further four were filed against Caruana Galizia’s son Matthew, one against ex-PN leader Simon Busuttil, one against Julian Bonnici of LovinMalta and the 42nd one against independent electoral candidate Arnold Cassola.

Malta’s 42 SLAPPs put the island at the top of the list for the highest number of cases per capita. According to CASE, this means eight cases were filed for every 100,000 people, followed by 1.95 per 100,000 for Slovenia and 1.22 for Bosnia and Herzegovina. 

Silvio Debono, Adrian Delia file high number of SLAPPs

The top plaintiff flagged by the study was Slovenian Rok Snezic (39 SLAPPs), followed by Maltese business mogul Silvio Debono who filed 19.

Former PN leader Adrian Delia also made it among the top SLAPPers, with five cases to his name.

Last year the DB Group owner and the Caruana Galizia family reached a settlement that effectively ended the 19 libel suits which the businessman had filed against the journalist four years before.

Most withdrawn SLAPPs 

Another 14 SLAPP suits in Malta were withdrawn. This was the highest number of withdrawn suits in Europe. Malta was followed by France (seven) and Poland and Italy (three each).

According to CASE, only one case was dismissed while another one was won by the complainant in Malta. In contrast, 14 were won by the complainant in Poland.

Photo: CASE report

What is the outcome of SLAPPs in the courts? Photo: CASE report

What is the outcome of SLAPPs in the courts? Photo: CASE report

What can European states do?

• Decriminalise defamation and bring other laws criminalising speech in line with human rights standards.
• Commit to the full implementation of anti-SLAPP legislation proposed by the Commission.
• Offer victims support.
• Collect data on SLAPPs.

How were the cases chosen?

For this report, NGOs, media outlets, journalists, activists, politicians, and others around Europe contributed information on SLAPP cases filed in over 29 European jurisdictions from 2010 to 2021.

The 29 jurisdictions are: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom and Ukraine.

The report Shutting out criticism: How SLAPPs threaten European democracy, was prepared for CASE by The Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, Greenpeace International and Amsterdam Law Clinics.