The ECCTA anti-SLAPP provisions came into force on 18 June 2025, and in March 2026 the High Court delivered the first statutory strike-out, throwing out an oppressive £8m libel claim in Kamal v Tax Policy Associates. The regime applies only to claims relating to economic crime. Reporting on sexual misconduct, environmental harm, political wrongdoing or public safety gets no protection, and the government has stated no current plans to extend it. The UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition has a drafted model law ready, and the Anti-Corruption Strategy committed to tackling legal threats against journalists exposing corruption while stopping short of comprehensive legislation.
SLAPPs are how UK corruption stays unreported, and London remains the venue of choice for wealthy claimants who exhaust journalists before publication. The March 2026 ruling proves the statutory mechanism works. Leaving most public-interest speech unprotected is now a legislative choice.
A comprehensive Anti-SLAPP Act covering all public-interest speech, on the UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition's model law, with matching court procedure rules and a legal-defence fund for small newsrooms and freelancers facing pre-publication threats.
// Build now: First artefact: legal-defence fund for small newsrooms and freelancers; comprehensive Anti-SLAPP Act is the end-state.
The strike-out mechanism is proven and protects only economic-crime reporting; a drafted model law would cover all public-interest speech, so the remaining exposure is a legislative choice.
claims & evidence · 4
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- 93.1verifiedchecked 2026-07-07The ECCTA anti-SLAPP provisions came into force on 18 June 2025 and apply only to claims relating to economic crime.
- 93.2reportedchecked 2026-07-07In March 2026 the High Court delivered the first statutory anti-SLAPP strike-out, dismissing an £8m libel claim in Kamal v Tax Policy Associates.Two independent secondary accounts agree; the judgment's neutral citation on the National Archives case law service is the primary source to add.
- 93.3reportedchecked 2026-10-08The government has stated it has no current plans to extend anti-SLAPP protection beyond economic crime.Ministerial position documented in the legal press: monitor the ECCTA regime first, no further legislation this session. The Hansard reference would complete it.
- 93.4verifiedchecked 2026-07-07The UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition has a drafted model law ready.