In the last year 16 libel claimants cited material published on the internet in their legal actions.

<p><br />This compares to just seven cases the year before, according to statistics complied by legal information firm Sweet and Maxwell<br />The rise has been disclosed as social networking websites become the new front line in the debate over Britain’s libel laws.<br />In March, Colin Elsbury, a Caerphilly county councillor, was ordered to pay £3,000 damages and costs to a political rival over false claims of wrongdoing he made on Twitter.<br />And in May it was revealed that South Tyneside Council went to court in the United States to force the website to reveal the identities of an anonymous user it claimed had libelled officials.<br />Korieh Duodu, a media barrister at Addleshaw Goddard, said libellous claims could spread on Facebook and Twitter quickly without being checked by professional journalists.<br />“Such is the speed at which information travels through social networks that one unchecked comment can spread into the mainstream media within minutes, which can cause irreparable damage to the subject who has been wronged,” he said.<br />Despite the rise in online defamation claims, the figures also show that celebrities are using libel laws less. Instead, they are attempting to suppress stories using human rights legislation.<br />Sweet and Maxwell said only nine celebrities claimed for libel in the year to 31 May, compared to 22 in the previous 12 months.<br />“The increased use of anonymity orders in privacy claims has enabled well-known individuals to prevent anything being published at all,” said Mr Duodu.<br />“This will in some cases prevent the need for the individual to sue for libel after the event."<br />Social networking websites are also challenging privacy laws, however.<br />In May more than 75,000 Twitter users broke a High Court gagging order obtained by the footballer Ryan Giggs to suppress details of his alleged affair with a glamour model. John Hemming, the Lib Dem MP for Birmingham Yardley, then disclosed details of the affair under parliamentary privilege, saying it was “obviously impractical” to imprison everyone who breached the super-injunction.<br />In response to calls for tighter regulation of social networks, Twitter has stated a bias towards free speech, saying that “the tweets must flow”.<br />“We strive not to remove Tweets on the basis of their content,” it said.<br />The fall in celebrity libel claims in the year was counterbalanced by a sharp rise in claims by businesses which more than trebled. Some 16 sued for defamation, compared to five in the previous 12 months.<br />It meant the total number of defamation claims rose slightly, from 83 to 86.<br />A new Defamation Bill, designed to make it more difficult for foreign claimants to pursue claims in British courts and offer defendants a stronger public interest defence, is due before Parliament. Mr Duodu said it should have also taken the impact of the web into greater account.<br /><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/twitter/8725859/Facebook-and-Twitter-drive-rise-in-online-libel-claims.html"><br /></a></p>

In the last year 16 libel claimants cited material published on the internet in their legal actions.

This compares to just seven cases the year before, according to statistics complied by legal information firm Sweet and MaxwellThe rise has been disclosed as social networking websites become the new …

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SOCIAL networking media such as Twitter and BlackBerry Messenger could be shut down if rioters use them to orchestrate violence,

<p>SOCIAL networking media such as Twitter and BlackBerry Messenger could be shut down if rioters use them to orchestrate violence, David Cameron has warned.<br /><br />The Prime Minister also raised the prospect of new police powers to track offenders through the websites as he said it could be necessary to “close them down”.<br /><br />Disabling the Twittersphere is just one of a raft of controversial measures being considered as the Coalition Government attempts to prevent further violent outbreaks.</p>

SOCIAL networking media such as Twitter and BlackBerry Messenger could be shut down if rioters use them to orchestrate violence,

SOCIAL networking media such as Twitter and BlackBerry Messenger could be shut down if rioters use them to orchestrate violence, David Cameron has warned.The Prime Minister also raised the prospect of…

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