{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/defamation-act-2013/section-16",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/defamation-act-2013/section-16.json",
  "legislation": "ukpga/2013/26",
  "legislation_title": "Defamation Act 2013",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/defamation-act-2013",
  "path": "section/16",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "16",
  "heading": "Consequential amendments and savings etc",
  "text": "(1) Section 8 of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (defamation actions) is amended in accordance with subsections (2) and (3).\n(2) In subsection (3) for “of justification or fair comment or” substitute “ under section 2 or 3 of the Defamation Act 2013 which is available to him or any defence ”.\n(3) In subsection (5) for “the defence of justification” substitute “ a defence under section 2 of the Defamation Act 2013 ”.\n(4) Nothing in section 1 or 14 affects any cause of action accrued before the commencement of the section in question.\n(5) Nothing in sections 2 to 7 or 10 has effect in relation to an action for defamation if the cause of action accrued before the commencement of the section in question.\n(6) In determining whether section 8 applies, no account is to be taken of any publication made before the commencement of the section.\n(7) Nothing in section 9 or 11 has effect in relation to an action for defamation begun before the commencement of the section in question.\n(8) In determining for the purposes of subsection (7)(a) of section 3 whether a person would have a defence under section 4 to any action for defamation, the operation of subsection (5) of this section is to be ignored.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "S. 16(5) repealed (S.) (8.8.2022) by Defamation and Malicious Publication (Scotland) Act 2021 (asp 10), ss. 35(4)(a), 39(2); S.S.I. 2022/154, regs. 1(2), 2"
    },
    {
      "type": "I",
      "label": "I1",
      "text": "S. 16 partly in force; s. 16(4)-(8) in force at Royal Assent, see s. 17(6)"
    },
    {
      "type": "I",
      "label": "I2",
      "text": "S. 16(1)-(3) in force at 1.1.2014 by S.I. 2013/3027, art. 2"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2013/26/section/16",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T09:08:10.128554+00:00",
    "licence": "OGL-UK-3.0",
    "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
    "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
  }
}