California Governor Gavin Newsom has filed a US$787 million defamation lawsuit against Fox News, accusing the network and host Jesse Watters of knowingly spreading false claims about a phone call he had with Donald Trump amid recent Los Angeles protests.

Newsom alleges Fox misrepresented the timeline and nature of the call, echoing tactics from its 2023 Dominion Voting Systems case, and demands a retraction and on-air apology. The lawsuit argues the misinformation is part of a broader effort to distort public discourse, while Fox dismisses the suit as a political stunt aimed at silencing criticism. The Independent, Reuters, The Guardian, Forbes, Politico, The New York Times, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, NBC News and Business Insider have more information.

The High Court in Belfast has denied Sebastian Bond, operator of the gossip site Tattle Life, permission to lift the £1.8 million asset freeze to pay his legal fees, citing his ongoing failure to provide evidence of his financial situation. Bond was previously ordered to pay £300,000 in damages to Neil and Donna Sands for defamatory content posted on the site, which allows anonymous commentary on public figures. The Sands now plan to initiate contempt of court proceedings, potentially seeking Bond’s imprisonment for not complying with disclosure orders. The Belfast Telegraph covered the development and Matrix has more information.

Brett Wilson Media Blog has an article examining the harassment case of Sledziewski & Anor v Persons Unknown & Anor, which concerned a social media backlash to a video showing the poor driving of the claimant’s employee. The High Court dismissed the application for an interim injunction and found the case was meritless. The case highlights the further reputational damage and significant costs that claimants can incur when bringing a baseless claim.

Internet and Social Media

Meta has acknowledged a technical error that led to some Facebook Groups and Instagram accounts being wrongly suspended, but denies a broader platform-wide issue. Group admins and users report receiving incorrect violation notices, blaming Meta’s AI moderation tools and the lack of human support. Affected users include the admins of large groups – such as a Pokémon group with 260,000 members and an interior design group with more than 3 million members – and individuals who lost access to business or sentimental content. Over 22,000 people have signed a petition against “Meta wrongfully disabling accounts.” The BBC and Mashable have more information.

Data privacy and data protection

Osborne Clarke has an article examining the Data Use and Access Act which recently received royal assent. The new legislation introduces the first major updates to the UK GDPR along with broader data-related reforms aimed at encouraging the use and sharing of personal data to support economic growth and innovation. The changes include enabling digital identity verification, expanding smart data schemes, and updating rules on cookies, automated decisions, and subject access requests. It will also be a criminal offence to create or request the creation of a deepfake. On the contentious area of copyright, the government will be required to report on policy options for AI training that were considered in its AI Copyright Consultation.

Privacy International has a guide to using privacy-preserving settings on the WhatsApp App.

Surveillance

The Guardian has an article examining the largely unregulated private surveillance industry in the UK, which allows operatives, including former military, police, and intelligence professionals, to offer covert services to corporations and individuals. While state surveillance is governed by laws like the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, no equivalent exists for the private sector. Certain forms of surveillance may give rise to a misuse of private information, however civil claims are rare – as targets are unaware of the surveillance – and are often settled.

Newspaper Journalism and regulation

IPSO has an article on Clause 2 (Privacy) of the Editor’s Code of Practice and its importance. It explains that editors will be expected to justify intrusions into an individual’s private life without consent, but in certain circumstances can justify doing so on the basis of public interest.

IPSO

Statements in open court and apologies

On Friday 27 June 2025, there was a statement in open court in the case of Gibbons and others v Coldrick KB-2024-003001.

New Issued cases

There was one Part 8 claim (Norwich Pharmacal Order) filed on the media and communication list last week.

Last week in the courts

On Tuesday 24 June 2025, the court heard an application by the defendant in the case of Sikhs for Justice and another v Ranger KB-2022-004490 .

Jay J dismissed the claim brought by the UK branch of Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) against Conservative peer Rami Ranger over comments suggesting SFJ and its leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun were funded by “enemies of India,” but allowed Pannun’s personal claim to proceed. The claim arose from a 2021 interview with Pakistan Daily and subsequent tweet in which Ranger accused the group of spreading false claims to raise money. The judge ruled the article did not refer to SFJ UK and that suggesting funding from Pakistan was not inherently defamatory. Times of India and Firstpost covered the ruling.

On Wednesday 25 June 2025, there was a return date hearing in the case of Emerging Media Ventures Ltd v Kundra KB-2025-001918. The case was brought by the majority owner of the Indian Premier League Cricket Franchise, Rajasthan Royals against former co-owner, Raj Kundra, over claims that Kundra attempted to blackmail the claimant in violation of a confidential settlement agreement from 2019. The claimant alleges that the defendant threatened to report damaging allegations to the Indian authorities and Cricket Board, unless he was compensated or had his original stake in the franchise restored. Hindustan Times, The Economic Times, NDTV reported on the case.

On the same day, there was an amendment application in the case of Dowding v The Character Group PLC and others KB-2023-003510.

On Thursday 26 June 2025, there was an application for summary judgment before Richard Spearman KC in the case of McAteer v Thoburn KB-2024-003652.

Media law in other jurisdictions

Canada

On 23 June 2025, the Court of Appeal of Alberta handed down judgement in the appeal of Giesbrecht v Prpick, 2025 ABCA 222. After a first instance trial, the appellant was found liable for defamation for distributing a letter accusing Redcliff public officials of criminal activity to government officials and the media. The defendant appealed the decision on nine grounds, after she was ordered to pay damages to the respondents and permanently barred from sending similar communications in the future. The court limited the scope of the permanent injunction but otherwise dismissed the appeal, holding that trial judge accurately stated the test for defamation and did not display bias towards the defendant.

Europe

Dutch political activist Michiel van der Linde has filed a legal complaint against Europol, accusing the agency of unlawfully processing his personal data and seeking compensation for reputational harm, mental distress, and five years of denied access to his file. If Europol does not accept liability by 1 July, the case could proceed to the European Court of Justice, potentially setting a precedent for individuals challenging the agency’s expanding surveillance powers. Statewatch has more information.

Hungary

Dozens of rights groups have urged the European Commission to take immediate action against Hungary use of facial recognition at the banned Budapest Pride, warning it may violate the EU’s AI Act, which prohibits real-time biometric surveillance by law enforcement. The groups called for the start of an infringement procedure against Hungary for violating the AI Act and the adoption of interim measures against the member state’s anti-LGBT legislation. The Commission has requested clarification from Hungary, however it has not yet determined whether the technology will be used in real-time, which will determine whether the safeguards in the AI Act apply. Civil Liberties Union for Europe and Algorithm Watch have more information and Politico and The Guardian covered the development.

Italy

A&O Shearman have an article examining the recent Italian Data Protection Authority (DPA) ruling that a company was in breach of the EU GDPR and the Italian Privacy Code by using the private messages and social media content of its employee, received from third parties, as evidence in disciplinary proceedings. The DPA concluded that the company violated the data protection principles of purpose limitation, data minimisation and lawful purpose by failing to conduct a proper balancing test or consider less intrusive means to achieve its objectives. The ruling also emphasised that the data related to the employee’s personal opinions and private communications which were unrelated to her job. The company was fined €420,000.

Research and Resources

Next week in the courts

On Tuesday 1 July, there will be a preliminary issues trial in the defamation case of Ness v Miller KB-2025-000232.

On Friday 4 July, there will be a return date hearing in the case of SHM v Persons Unknown.

Reserved judgements

Kul and Ors v DWF Law LLP – 4 and 5 June 2025 (Eady J).

Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon v Associated Newspapers, 6 and 7 May 2025 (Nicklin J).

Clarke v Guardian News and Media, 4 March – 4 April and 11 April 2025 (Steyn J).

 This Round Up was compiled by Jasleen Chaggar who is the Legal and Policy Officer at Big Brother Watch.