CPD Course:
Defamation
- How to Prove
and Defend
Such Claims?

Dr. Roger So is a Barrister-at-Law, a Chartered Engineer, an experienced accredited mediator, an arbitrator and an adjudicator.  He is on the List of Mediators and List of Arbitrators administered by the Hong Kong Bar Association, and the List of Arbitrators and Mediators maintained by the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers.  He is also a Fellow member of the Hong Kong Institute of Arbitrators and a Corporate Member of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers.

Dr. So has a broad civil and criminal practice, including general commercial disputes, shareholders’ disputes, property disputes, building management disputes, matrimonial and family disputes, personal injuries disputes, construction disputes, etc.  He regularly appears for the prosecution and defence in criminal cases.  He has served as the legal advisor to a Disciplinary Tribunal in addition to handling a number of civil proceedings.  Prior to becoming a barrister, he has over 20 years of engineering and project management experience specialising in the design and construction of railway extensions in Hong Kong and overseas.

His academic credentials include Doctor of Business Administration (The University of Newcastle, Australia), PCLL, JD, MA in Arbitration & Disputes Resolution, and BSc (Hon) Engineering.  Apart from acting as the mediator, Dr. So has also served as mediation coach to mediation courses offered by the Shue Yan University and has provided mediation training to the Shantou University Law School.

Dr. So has delivered over 25 CPD seminars (2-hour or 3-hour each) accredited by the Law Society of Hong Kong and/or the Hong Kong Mediation Accreditation Association Limited.  Besides, he has published two journal articles on property in human tissues and is a regular contributor to the Building Management Journal, in which he has published 19 Chinese journal articles on Water Seepage Claims, Interlocutory Injunctions and various building management issues.  He is also the Annotator of the Annotated Ordinance, Cap 319, Foreign Judgments (Reciprocal Enforcement).

It has often been said that “when a leopard dies it leaves its skin; when a man dies he leaves his name.” (「豹死留皮, 人死留名」).  This illustrates the importance of the reputation to a person, which may be treasured as important as one’s life, if not more than.  It is therefore not uncommon to encounter disputes involving a person’s fame resulting in litigation known as defamation actions.

This course will give an overview of the laws on defamation, focusing on the civil liability and general defences.  We will also discuss the criminal liability, specific defences, the relief and quantum aspects of defamation.  Participants will also work on a case study to apply the newly acquired knowledge.

This course is intended to provide a concise and yet comprehensive coverage of the law on defamation, supplement with a hands on practice session to work on a defamation case.

At the end of the course, participants should be able to:

• Understand the liability aspects of defamation claims;
• Understand the quantum aspects of defamation claims;
• Recognise the available defences to such claims;
• Grasp the lessons learnt from cases; and
• Appreciate the likely issues when prosecuting or defending such claims.

• Introduction
• What is Defamation?
• Who Can Sue and Be Sued?
• Liability in Tort of Libel and Slander
• Criminal Liability
• Defences in General
• Specific Defences
• Relief and Quantum of Damages
• Case Study
• Questions and answers