Donald Trump’s legal team has refused to provide financial records requested by the BBC in his $10 billion defamation lawsuit over a Panorama documentary about the 6 January 2021 Capitol riots. Trump claims the programme damaged his reputation and business interests by misleadingly editing parts of a speech he gave before the unrest.

His lawyers described the BBC’s request for financial information as a disproportionate “fishing expedition.” The Guardian, London Evening Standard and The Independent have more information.

The Northern Ireland Court of Appeal has granted Neil and Donna Sands permission to appeal after their defamation and privacy claim against the operators of the Tattle Life website was dismissed. The couple had previously secured default judgments and £150,000 damages awards each over posts about them and their family. However, the High Court later set aside those judgments, finding there had been material non-disclosure regarding the identity of the website’s operators. The Sands argue that the operator, Sebastian Bond, knew about the proceedings and deliberately chose not to participate, making the dismissal of their claim a disproportionate outcome in relation to the non-disclosure. The appeal is due to be heard in the autumn. Matrix Chambers has a summary of the judgement, which is available to read in full here.

Internet and Social Media

The Competition and Markets Authority has ordered Google to give publishers greater control over how their content is used in AI-powered search features such as AI Overviews. In response, Google announced that it will test new tools allowing publishers to opt out of having their content appear in AI-generated search results or be used to fine-tune AI models. Farrer & Co and Foxglove have a summary of the ruling and the BBC, Guardian, ABC and The Press Gazette have more information.

The Clean up the Internet blog features an article examining LinkedIn’s identity verification model and exploring the lessons it offers to regulators when developing effective online regulation.

The Socially Aware blog has an article examining the different regulatory approaches that several US states are taking towards online safety, including government-mandated mental health warning labels.

Data privacy and data protection

The ICO has secured over £118,000 in confiscation orders against former RAC employees Debbie Okparavero and Maliha Islam following Proceeds of Crime Act hearings after they admitted unlawfully copying and selling nearly 30,000 records containing personal information. The financial penalties follow suspended prison sentences and unpaid work orders imposed in 2024.

Mischon de Reya has an article explaining the new requirements for organisations to maintain internal data protection complaints processes from 19 June 2026. Individuals will generally be expected to raise concerns with the organisation first before escalating unresolved issues to the ICO.

Surveillance

Meta has quietly embedded facial recognition facilities in its meta glasses, according to Wired, although there has not been a final decision on whether to activate it. The feature is designed to identify people seen through Meta’s smart glasses using biometric data stored on users’ phones and notify wearers when a recognised person is detected. Electronic Frontier Foundation and The Independent covered the development.

Newspaper Journalism and regulation

The Press Gazette reported on recently released files linked to Peter Mandelson, which reveal that Wes Streeting attended a private dinner with senior News editors, including Lachlan Murdoch, Rebekah Brooks and Tony Gallagher, just days before the July 2024 general election. The meeting, referenced in WhatsApp messages between Mandelson and Streeting, appears to have formed part of Labour’s efforts to strengthen relations with influential media organisations ahead of the election.

IPSO

Statements in open court and apologies

We are not aware of any Statements in Open Court or Apologies from the last week.

New Issued cases

There was one new data protection case issued in the Media and Communications List in the last week.

Last week in the courts

On 3 June 2026, Steyn J dismissed the claimant’s applications in the libel case of Picker v Tew [2026] EWHC 1331 (KB). The defendant made an allegation of sexual assault against the claimant in two emails to university staff requesting a Non-Contact Agreement. The claimant sought to strike out the defendant’s defence of truth and obtain summary judgement. The High Court ruled that the defendant disclosed reasonable grounds for defending the claim and that the defence of truth was not an abuse of process. The claimant was also unable to show that the defendant’s defence of truth had no real prospect of succeeding [84]. Matrix Chambers has a summary of the judgement.

Media law in other jurisdictions

Australia

Former PwC Australia CEO Luke Sayers has failed in his attempt to move a defamation lawsuit brought by his estranged wife, Cate Sayers, from the Victorian Supreme Court to the Family Court, where proceedings would have been confidential. Justice Andrew Watson ruled that the public nature of defamation cases is important for reputational vindication and allowed the matter to remain in open court, while rejecting Cate Sayers’ request for a jury trial. The case, which is due to be heard in November, concerns allegations that Luke Sayers defamed and invaded her privacy in relation to an explicit photo posted on his X account and subsequent claims he allegedly made about her mental health and involvement in the post. The AFR and ABC News covered the decision.

Canada

On 4 June 2026, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice handed down judgement in the appeal of Browne v. Picart, 2026 ONSC 3308. The case arose after the Appellant, Browne, abandoned his own claim over an unfavourable performance review and was instead found liable for defamation after the defendants brought a counterclaim in relation to Browne’s use of a derogatory term in a blog post. Browne argued that the trial judge (i) should have recused himself due to a reasonable apprehension of bias and (ii) erred in dismissing his defences of fair comment and truth. The Ontario Superior Court of Justice dismissed the appeal on all grounds, finding that there was no reasonable apprehension of bias by the trial judge; there was evidence to support the trial judge’s finding that Browne’s term was derogatory; the trial judge did not err in dismissing Browne’s defences of fair comment or truth or awarding each respondent $35,000 in damages; and the Appellant was treated with procedural fairness.

The Canadian government has unveiled a new national AI strategy centred on “AI for All”, committing significant investment to accelerate AI adoption across the economy while emphasising public trust. However, the plan largely postpones major regulatory decisions, with ministers opting against AI-specific laws and instead relying on updated privacy protections and revived online safety measures. The Michael Geist blog analyses the strategy.

Europe

A ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union has clarified that employers may struggle to justify keeping records of investigations on HR files indefinitely when no wrongdoing was found. The case involved a Bulgarian police officer who was denied promotion because details of a past arrest remained in his employment records despite no charges being brought. The decision is likely to strengthen employees’ GDPR rights, as it signals that retaining investigation-related data without a clear reason could breach data protection rules and support requests for erasure. Pinsent Masons has a summary of the ruling.

Hungary

Hungary’s government plans to introduce legislation next week to overhaul the country’s public media system. Prime Minister Péter Magyar stated that the goal is to create more balanced and impartial public broadcasting by reviewing its governance, funding, oversight and editorial standards. Hungary Today and Hungarian Conservative have more information.

United States

President Trump’s decision to appoint a close political ally with no intelligence background to oversee intelligence agencies has cast uncertainty over efforts to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The controversial surveillance program allows intelligence agencies to collect communications of foreign targets abroad without a warrant, even when those communications involve people in the US. The program has faced criticism over privacy concerns, particularly after it was revealed that the FBI used Section 702 in 2020 to examine whether Black Lives Matter protesters had links to terrorism. The Guardian, Bloomberg, CBS News and NYT have more information.

Research and Resources

Next week in the courts

On Monday 8 June 2026 Linden J will hear the trial of a preliminary issue in the case of Kaur v Fox KB-2025-001497

Reserved judgements

Bridgen v Hancock, heard 20 May 2026 (King, Warby and Whipple LJJ)

Vince v Tice, heard 14 May 2026 (Lewison, Coulson and Warby LJJ)

Baroness Lawrence & ors v ANL, heard 19 January – 31 March 2026 (Nicklin J)

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