Does a hyperlink constitute publication of defamatory content?
British Columbia, Canada
The following excerpt is from Galloway v A.B, 2021 BCSC 2344 (CanLII):
To prove the publication element of defamation, a plaintiff must establish that the defendant has, by any act, conveyed defamatory meaning to a single third party who has received it. Traditionally, the form the defendant’s act takes and the manner in which it assists in causing the defamatory content to reach the third party are irrelevant. See Crookes v. Newton, 2011 SCC 47, at para. 16. Generally speaking, including a hyperlink does not constitute publication of what is found at the hyperlink: Crookes, at paras. 26-27, 30 and 42.
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