Defamation Act 1992

Defences - General

20: Joint publishers

You could also call this:

"When you and someone else publish something that hurts someone's reputation together"

You are involved in a case about defamation, which is when someone says something that hurts another person's reputation. If you and someone else are responsible for publishing something that hurts someone's reputation, you can still defend yourself even if the other person did not really believe what they said. You can also defend yourself if the other person was motivated by ill will or took advantage of the situation. You can use these defences whether or not the other person is also being sued. If someone who works for you says something that hurts someone's reputation, you are still responsible for their actions. This rule does not change that responsibility. You are responsible for what your employees or agents do, even if you did not tell them to do it.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM281233.

This page was last updated on 2 December 2025 — View changes

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19: Rebuttal of qualified privilege, or

"Saying something mean about someone might not be okay, even if you have a good reason"

21: Innocent dissemination, or

"Defending yourself if you didn't know what you shared was wrong"

Part 2Defences
General

20Joint publishers

In any proceedings for defamation in respect of matter that includes or consists of an expression of opinion, a defence of honest opinion shall not fail merely because the opinion expressed by any person jointly responsible with the defendant for the publication of that matter was not that person's genuine opinion.
In proceedings for defamation, a defence of qualified privilege shall not fail merely because any person jointly responsible with the defendant for the publication of the matter in respect of which the proceedings are brought is proved, in publishing the matter, to have been motivated by ill will towards the plaintiff, or otherwise to have taken improper advantage of the occasion of publication.
Subsections (1) and (2) apply whether or not the person jointly responsible with the defendant for the publication of the matter is a defendant in the proceedings.
Nothing in this section affects the liability of a defendant in any proceedings for defamation for any act of the defendant's employee or agent.