How to complain about a newspaper article in Ireland: the Press Ombudsman route and the court route

If a newspaper, magazine or news website has published something false about you, there are two routes, and you cannot run both at once. The Press Ombudsman route is free and ends in a decision on whether the Code of Practice was breached. The court route can end in damages and a correction order, and costs money either way. This guide is for the person written about.

Two routes, and the choice between them

The three-month limit is the first thing to work out. It is far shorter than the one-year defamation limit, and it starts on publication, not on the day you saw the article.

Step one: write to the editor

The Ombudsman route requires you to take your complaint to the publication first. Write to the editor. The letter should:

• identify the article: title, date, page or URL, and the author if named;
• quote or closely describe the passage you complain of;
• say what is inaccurate, unfair or intrusive about it, and why;
• say what you want: a correction, an apology, a right of reply, or removal of the online version;
• give a date by which you would like a response.

Keep the tone factual and keep a copy with proof of when it was sent. The notice builder drafts this letter from the details you give it. Do not threaten court proceedings in this letter if you intend to use the Ombudsman, because the Ombudsman cannot deal with a complaint that is also before the courts.

Step two: the Office of the Press Ombudsman

If the publication does not resolve the matter, you can refer it to the Office of the Press Ombudsman within three months of publication. The service is free. The Office deals only with member publications; the list of members is published by the Office, and you should check it before you start, because a non-member cannot be made to take part.

The Office tries conciliation first: an agreed correction, clarification or right of reply. If that fails, the Ombudsman makes a decision on whether the Code of Practice was breached. The outcome is a decision, not an award of damages; compensation is a remedy only a court can order under the Defamation Act 2009.

The Press Council's Code of Practice sets out the principles member publications agree to follow. The text is on presscouncil.ie. The Code is under its first full review in 2026, so read the version that stands on the day you complain and quote the principle by its number and heading as it appears there. The review is tracked at the rule-change tracker.

What the Ombudsman route can and cannot give

It can give you a decision, at no cost, that the Code was or was not breached, and it can produce an agreed correction or right of reply through conciliation. For many people that is what they wanted: the record corrected where the readers are.

It cannot give you damages. It cannot deal with a publication that is not a member. It cannot run alongside court proceedings. And it cannot be started after three months from publication.

If the publisher is a website that is not a member, the routes are a written request to the publisher and, for content hosted on a platform, a notice under Article 16 of the Digital Services Act; the first-day guide sets those out.

The court route

A defamation claim is brought under the Defamation Act 2009. Under s.6 a statement may be defamatory if it tends to injure your reputation in the eyes of reasonable members of society, was published to at least one person other than you, and identifies you or would be understood to refer to you. You do not need to prove financial loss.

The clock. One year from the date the cause of action accrued. For a print article that is the date of publication; for the online version, the date it was first capable of being viewed. The court may extend to two years where the interests of justice require it and the prejudice to you of refusing would significantly outweigh the prejudice to the publisher (Statute of Limitations 1957, s.11(2)(c) and (3A)). One cause of action covers every publication of the same article to the public by the same publisher (s.11, the multiple publication rule), with the court's leave needed for a further action. The time-limit guide explains how the Ombudsman's three months and the court's one year sit together.

Which court. The Circuit Court hears claims up to €75,000 before a judge alone, and most cases settle within that limit (RDJ, November 2025). The High Court has no upper limit; for proceedings issued on or after 1 March 2026 a judge sits alone (Defamation (Amendment) Act 2026, s.4). In 2024, 61 defamation proceedings were issued in the High Court and 228 in the Circuit Court (Courts Service Annual Report 2024, via RDJ LLP). A claimant who issues in the High Court and recovers a sum within the Circuit Court limit can be restricted to Circuit Court costs (Courts and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2013).

The defences a newspaper will raise. Truth (s.16); honest opinion (s.20) for comment and reviews; absolute privilege (s.17) for fair and accurate court reports, extended in 2026 to courts in Northern Ireland and elsewhere; qualified privilege (s.18); and fair and reasonable publication on a matter of public interest (s.26), which since 2026 requires public interest, a reasonable belief that publication was in the public interest, and good faith. The public interest defence guide covers s.26, and the defences guide covers the rest.

What the court can order. General, aggravated and punitive damages. The Supreme Court's bands in Higgins v Irish Aviation Authority [2022] IESC 13 run from moderate (€0 to €50,000) through medium (€50,001 to €125,000), serious (€125,001 to €199,000) and very serious (€200,000 to €300,000) to exceptional above that. Newspaper cases produce the outliers: Leech v Independent Newspapers, €1.25 million in the Supreme Court in 2014, reduced from €1.87 million. The register at the awards register lists what has been reported. The court can also make a correction order (s.30), which since 2026 must have the same or similar prominence as the original, and a declaratory order (s.28), where you show the publisher has no defence likely to succeed.

Offers of amends. A publisher can make an offer of amends under ss.22 and 23: a correction, an apology and compensation. If you reject it, it is a defence unless the publisher knew the statement was false, and the court weighs conduct after an offer when fixing costs. A 10% discount on damages for an offer of amends was upheld in Higgins. The apology and offer of amends guide explains the sequence.

Costs. Costs follow the event: a claimant whose case fails normally pays the publisher's costs. Civil legal aid does not cover defamation (Civil Legal Aid Act 1995, s.28(9)). Solicitors may not charge a percentage of damages and must give a written costs notice under s.150 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015. Before issuing, your solicitor must tell you about alternative dispute resolution. The cost guide sets out each figure.

Choosing

Most people who are written about want three things: the record corrected, the correction seen by the same readers, and the matter over. The Ombudsman route offers the first two at no cost, for member publications. The court route offers damages and a correction order with the force of law, at a cost and over a longer period, and with the costs risk if the publisher's defence succeeds. The two cannot be run together, and the three-month limit means the Ombudsman decision has to be made first.

A broadcast complaint runs on different deadlines and goes to Coimisiún na Meán rather than the Ombudsman; the broadcast complaint guide covers radio and television.

Where this leaves you

The first task is the letter to the editor, which both routes start with, and the first deadline is three months from publication. The notice builder drafts the letter with the article details, the passage complained of and what you are asking for. Keep an eye on the rule-change tracker for the Code of Practice review and for the parts of the 2026 Act that are not yet in force.