Victorian Consolidated Legislation

Defamation Act 2005 - SECT 48

New Division 2A inserted in Part II of Limitation of Actions Act 1958

48. New Division 2A inserted in Part II of Limitation of Actions Act 1958

After Division 2 of Part II of the Limitation of Actions Act 1958 insert-
"Division 2A-Defamation
23B. Defamation

(1) A person claiming to have a cause of action for defamation may apply to a
court for an order extending the limitation period for the cause of action.

(2) A court, on an application under subsection (1), must, if satisfied that
it was not reasonable in the circumstances for the plaintiff to have commenced
an action in relation to the matter complained of within 1 year from the date
of the publication, extend the limitation period mentioned in section 5(1AAA)
to a period of up to 3 years from the date of the publication.

(3) A court may not order the extension of the limitation period for a cause
of action for defamation other than in the circumstances specified in
subsection (2).

(4) If a court orders the extension of a period of limitation applicable to a
cause of action under this section, that period of limitation is accordingly
extended for the purposes of an action brought by the applicant in that court
on the cause of action that the applicant claims to have.

(5) An order for the extension of a limitation period, and an application for
such an order, may be made under this section even though the limitation
period has already expired.
23C. Transitional-Defamation Act 2005

(1) In this section- existing law of defamation has the same meaning as in
section 46 of the Defamation Act 2005; existing limitation law means the
provisions of this Act that applied in relation to the limitation period for
defamation actions immediately before the commencement of the
Defamation Act 2005; new limitation law means sections 5(1AAA) and 23B as
inserted by the Defamation Act 2005.

(2) The new limitation law applies to the publication of any defamatory matter
to which the Defamation Act 2005 applies.

(3) The existing limitation law continues to apply to any cause of action to
which the existing law of defamation continues to apply by force of section 46
of the Defamation Act 2005.".