During an on-line interview organised in Brussels by the European Newsroom for the participating news agencies, European Commission Vice-President for Values and Transparency Vera Jourova told AGERPRES that in 2024 she will try to convince the EU member states to transpose into their domestic law the measure of early dismissal by the courts of strategic lawsuits against public mobilisation (SLAPPs) from the EU anti-SLAPP directive, after it would first apply in cross-border cases, write Agerpres.

„There were big expectations that we would adopt the legislation of which will cover all the SLAPPs. We could only do the cross-border cases. It’s a pity we could not do more and that’s why we balanced it with non legally binding recommendations,” said Jourova.

Asked when she expects the member states to send the first national reports on SLAPP, an obligation provided for in the directive, and how the European Commission (EC) would use this data, Jourova said: „I think we will have the report by the end of this year, and this will be rather the opportunity for further discussions with the member states rather than placing this as a warning or recommendation to the rule of law report. Definitely, not to this year’s rule of law report before we have the data.”

She added that „already the mapping of the scope of the problem will be useful,” because the first reaction of half of the EU member states when she presented the anti-SLAPP idea was they do not have such a problem on their territory.

„Then I came with concrete cases, concrete faces, concrete people being harassed by the justice system. I think that we are over that; many more member states recognise that they also have it, and I believe that next year we can do much more convincing the member states to introduce the anti-SLAPP measure, which is early dismissal of the case. I’m simplifying, but early dismissal is the core thing in it,” Jourova said about the directive.

The EC vice-president believes that she will have the chance next year to convince the member states to introduce this measure for their domestic cases „because, in case anti-SLAPP for cross-border cases will be adopted, the member states will have to anyway open their legislation and transpose it.”

„This is my commitment that I will discuss with the member states two things. ‘Could you please consider also imbedding this early dismissal into domestic law?’ (…) The second thing – we will look whether the member states followed our recommendation against the defamation law. Because this is a dangerous path, especially when you can go to jail for defamation,” which can easily be used as a stick against the journalists, added Jourova.

Asked what journalists or other persons affected by SLAPP can do who do not have immediate access to a lawyer until the adoption of such legislation, the senior EC official sounded a pessimistic note.

„What can you do at this moment? Hire a good lawyer. Sorry, I’m cynical, maybe. But we don’t have the legislation yet,” said Jourova.

At the same time, she encouraged those in question to seek for „solidarity actions from other journalists.”

„Because we saw such cases in the EU. The defence of Daphne Caruana Galizia came late, after she was killed. It is a sad story. It should have been done earlier,” Jourova said in connection with the Maltese investigative journalist murdered on October 16, 2017.

On April 27, 2022, the European Commission put forward a proposal for a directive intended to protect people who engage in public participation from manifestly unfounded or abusive civil court proceedings with cross-border implications. It enables judges to swiftly dismiss manifestly unfounded lawsuits against journalists and human rights defender.

The European Commission is also adopting a complementary recommendation to encourage member states to align their rules with the proposed EU law also for domestic cases and in all proceedings, not only civil matters.

The proposal is being analysed by the co-legislators

In 2021, the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR) documented 439 alerts – with 778 persons or entities related to media being attacked – in 24 EU member states, including SLAPPs.

A tragic example of the use of SLAPP is the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who was facing more than 40 lawsuits at the time of her assassination in 2017.