13/08/2026

Introduction

On 1 July 2026 the Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation Bill 2026 (PDF, 496 KB) (the “Bill”) was presented to the Dáil Éireann. This followed the publication of the General Scheme in respect of the Bill (the General Scheme in respect of the Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation Bill) (PDF, 319 KB) in February 2026.

The Bill transposes Directive (EU) 2024/1069 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 on protecting persons who engage in public participation from manifestly unfounded claims or abusive court proceedings (‘Strategic lawsuits against public participation’) (PDF, 1,104 KB) (the “Directive”). The Directive requires minimum protective measures to be available for those targeted by manifestly unfounded claims or abusive court proceedings as a result of their engagement in matters of public interest.

The Bill provides for a standalone regime for all civil and commercial proceedings (other than defamation proceedings) and, if enacted, will introduce new provisions specific to defamation proceedings into the Defamation Act 2009 (repealing the equivalent provisions included in Sections 19 and 20 of the Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026). Together, these steps will complete the transposition of the Directive.

What are SLAPPs?

The Bill defines “abusive court proceedings against public participation” as proceedings or part thereof that pursue unfounded claims and that are not brought to genuinely assert or exercise a right, but that have as their main purpose the prevention, restriction or penalisation of public participation, frequently exploiting an imbalance of power between the parties.

Such proceedings may include:

  • Where a claim is of a disproportionate, excessive or unreasonable nature (including where the claim has an excessive dispute value)
  • The existence of multiple proceedings initiated by the plaintiff or associated parties in relation to similar matters
  • Intimidation, harassment or threats on the part of the plaintiff or his or her representatives, before or during the proceedings, as well as similar conduct by the plaintiff in similar or concurrent cases
  • The use in bad faith of procedural tactics, such as delaying proceedings, fraudulent or abusive forum shopping or the discontinuation of cases at a later stage of the proceedings in bad faith

“Public participation” is defined as “the making of any statement or the carrying out of any activity by a person in the exercise of the right to freedom of expression and information, freedom of the arts and sciences, or freedom of assembly and association, and any preparatory, supporting or assisting action directly linked thereto, and which concerns a matter of public interest”.

Key protective measures

The Bill sets out several protective measures for defendants who are the subject of abusive court proceedings against public participation.

Amicus curiae appearances

The Bill provides the courts with the discretion to permit a person or body with a legitimate interest in safeguarding or promoting the rights of persons engaging in public participation (such as a human rights body, non-governmental organisation, or appropriate body with relevant expertise) to make written and oral submissions to the court, or to provide assistance to a defendant (though the person or body cannot provide funding for the proceedings).

Security for costs and damages

In proceedings brought against a defendant on account of their engagement in public participation, the court may, on application by the defendant, require the plaintiff to provide security for the defendant’s costs and/or any damages claimed by the defendant, if the court is satisfied that the defendant has established a prima facie case that the proceedings are abusive court proceedings against public participation, and that it is in the interests of justice to do so.

The Bill requires the court to have regard to several circumstances including:

  • Whether the provision of security to the defendant would be unduly burdensome or prejudicial to the plaintiff in the prosecution of his or her claim and the assertion of his or her rights
  • The likely impact on the defendant’s ability to defend the claim if security for costs or security for any damages, or both, is not granted
  • The conduct of the proceedings by the parties
  • The economic situation of the parties
  • Any substantial difficulty that may arise in enforcing an order for costs or damages

Early dismissal

A defendant in proceedings brought on account of the defendant’s engagement in public participation can apply to strike out a claim as being manifestly unfounded.

“Manifestly unfounded” in relation to a claim, includes situations where:

  • The indorsement or pleading is unnecessary, is an abuse of the process of the court, or in the case of an interim or interlocutory application, may unreasonably prejudice or delay the fair trial of the action
  • The claim discloses no reasonable cause of action, amounts to an abuse of process of the court, is bound to fail, or has no reasonable chance of succeeding

Where a court makes an order that the proceedings are abusive proceedings against public participation the court may also make a punitive costs order against the legal practitioner of the party which brought the abusive proceedings.

Declaration mechanism

The Bill provides that defendants in proceedings relating to his or her public participation may apply for a declaration by the court that the proceedings or part thereof amount to abusive proceedings against public participation, whether before, during or at the conclusion of the trial. If the court makes the declaration, it can take this into account when awarding costs in the proceedings (and may make a punitive costs order against the legal practitioner of the party which brought the abusive proceedings). The intention is that this may act as a deterrent against the initiation of abusive proceedings.

Damages for abusive proceedings

Where the court orders a strike out or orders a declaration that the proceedings or part thereof amount to abusive court proceedings against public participation, the Bill provides that the court may, on application by the defendant, order the plaintiff to pay damages to the defendant as a result of injury, loss or damage suffered by the defendant consequent upon the bringing of such proceedings. The plaintiff and defendant are both entitled to make submissions and adduce evidence regarding an order for damages. The damages recoverable in the Circuit Court and District Court are capped at that court’s monetary jurisdiction for a tort claim.

Publication

Where a court finds in the course of proceedings that the proceedings are abusive court proceedings against public participation, the court shall direct that any written judgment of the court or, in the absence of a written judgment of the court, any order of the court, related to that finding, shall be published on the website of the Courts Service where practicable and as soon as practicable. This creates a further reputational consideration for any potential plaintiffs involved in such proceedings.

Third-country judgments

Notably, the Bill prevents the courts from recognising or enforcing judgments in proceedings initiated in a third country which would have been considered manifestly unfounded or abusive court proceedings against public participation had they been initiated in Ireland – though this does not affect the application of any bilateral or multilateral agreement between Ireland and a third country concluded before 6 May 2024. 

A defendant domiciled in Ireland who is the subject of proceedings before a third-country court or tribunal, brought by a plaintiff domiciled in that third country, relating to the defendant’s public participation, may apply for a declaration by an Irish court that the proceedings or part thereof amount to abusive court proceedings against public participation, and may apply for compensation in respect of damage and costs incurred in connection with the third-country proceedings. This is intended to prevent the circumvention of the Irish anti-SLAPP provisions.

Current status

At this stage, the Bill has been presented to the Oireachtas and is proceeding through the legislative process. The Bill will still have to pass four more stages in the Dáil Éireann and five stages in the Seanad Éireann before it can be signed into law.

However, the deadline for transposition of the Directive (which was 7 May 2026) has already passed. Indeed, on 11 July 2026, the European Commission gave Ireland (and 13 other Member States) notice of infringement proceedings for their failure to transpose the Directive in time. The Commission’s notice required Ireland to respond and confirm transposition measures have been completed within two months (in the absence of which, the Commission may issue an opinion). It remains to be seen whether the Commission will take any further action following consideration of the Member States’ respective responses.

In any event, once enacted and commenced, the SLAPPs legislation will represent a comprehensive framework to protect individuals and organisations engaged in legitimate public participation across all civil and commercial proceedings. In particular, there will be legitimate deterrents (both financial and reputational) for claimants who may consider engaging in abusive proceedings.

For further advice on how these reforms may affect your business, please contact our Litigation, Dispute Resolution and Investigations Group.