Note. The Defamation Act 2005 applies to the publication of defamatory matter after the commencement of that Act. The Act commenced on 1 January 2006. However, the Defamation Act 1974 (as in force before its repeal by the Defamation Act 2005) continues to apply to the following causes of action by virtue of clause 2 (Application of this Act) of Schedule 4 (Savings, transitional and other provisions) to the Defamation Act 2005:

(a)  a cause of action for defamation that accrued before 1 January 2006,

(b)  a cause of action for defamation that accrued after the commencement of the Defamation Act 2005, but only if:

(i)  the action is raised in proceedings that include other causes of action that accrued before 1 January 2006, and

(ii)  the action accrued no later than 12 months after the earliest pre-1 January 2006 action accrued, and

(iii)  each action in the proceedings arose out of the publication of the same, or substantially the same, matter on different occasions.

Clause 2 of Schedule 4 to the Defamation Act 2005 also ensures that any other law (both legislative and common law) that would have applied to such causes of action but for the enactment of the new Act will continue to apply to such causes of action.