If your business has suffered economically as a result of false and maliciously created statements, hiring lawyers for injurious falsehood is the initial step that needs to be taken. In Australia, injurious falsehood exists separately from defamation and provides legal redress for the injury inflicted through deliberate lies to businesses as well as individuals.
This legal action is especially relevant in commercial situations when you make false statements with the definite intent to damage another’s financial interests. But not every false statement qualifies. To figure out whether you have a course of action to claim damages, it is useful to know what must be carefully documented and presented to prove an injurious falsehood case and how it differs from other similar claims.
What Is Injurious Falsehood?
Injurious falsehood, also known as malicious falsehood, is an Australian common law tort that guards the economic interests of a person or a business. It is where a person publishes a false, defamatory statement regarding a person’s goods or business to inflict financial harm. The injury should be real and measurable.
Unlike defamation, this tort does not consider defamation but takes into account economic damage as a result of wrongful words about commodities, services, or commercial behaviour. It is applied explicitly in trade rivalry, false reviews, and fraudulent publications that can cause business loss.
Elements of an Injurious Falsehood Claim
There are four elements that a plaintiff must prove for a successful injurious falsehood claim:
- A false statement: The statement in itself must be a lie. Truth is an absolute defence to an injurious falsehood action.
- Publication to a third party: The statement in itself must have been published to someone other than the claimant. Private words not spoken to anybody will not suffice.
- Malice: The defendant should be in malice, i.e., the defendant should have known the statement to be false and published it intending to cause injury.
- Actual economic loss: There should be particular evidence that the claimant suffered economic loss directly caused by the misleading statement. Damage to reputation or hurt feelings would not be sufficient.
All four of these facts must be proved on the balance of probabilities, and the bar is fairly high, especially in establishing malice.
Common Scenarios Where Injurious Falsehood May Arise
Injurious falsehood most commonly arises in commercial contexts. Some general circumstances are:
- A competitor falsely claims that regulators are investigating your company.
- A former worker who submits false complaints of safety or reliability problems with your product.
- A fake review or blog stating criminal behaviour on your part.
- A supplier asserting that you defaulted on a deal to destroy your market reputation.
All such cases lead to real financial harm, i.e., lost business, disrupted contracts, or lost market value. That makes them potential grounds for a claim.
Collecting Evidence for a Claim
Evidence is necessary for any claim of injurious falsehood. You will require evidence of the false information, evidence that it was communicated to third parties, and account books to prove that you suffered loss as a direct consequence.
It can include:
- Screenshots of defamatory online posts or messages.
- Third-party or client affidavits to whom false information was conveyed.
- Statements showing income before and after publication.
- Communications that establish evidence of knowledge or intent of falsehood by the publisher.
Since one of the hardest things to prove in a case is malice, any written declaration establishing proof of the falsehood of a statement or motive is of utmost importance.
Legal Remedies Available
If you succeed in proving an injurious falsehood, the court can award you damages for the loss of money incurred. It can be loss of profits, elimination of effects, and, in some instances, aggravated damages if the conduct was highly catastrophic.
Statutory Timeframes and Limitations
In Australia, claims for injurious falsehood are subject to time limits but are less restrictive than defamation. A case must generally be brought within six years of publication. Waiting for too long will lead to growing challenges in presenting evidence and reduced prospects of success before courts of law.
Legal practitioners often recommend swift action, especially if your business is still suffering ongoing harm. Prompt legal action can also be a powerful tool to halt damaging conduct before it escalates.
Conclusion
Injurious falsehood is a useful Australian court remedy for individuals and business owners who endure financial loss due to malicious and false statements. It is not a simple matter to pursue a claim for such a right; you need to be able to prove that there was a false statement, relied upon in bad faith, and resulted in economic loss immediately.
Though it is a complex area, action for injurious falsehood can provide relief and prevent future actions. Consulting a good falsehood or defamation lawyers services Perth can protect your business and reputation from further damage.