Can I sue the Human Rights Commission for defamation?

The situation

I am writing to ask about protection for the Commission in New South Wales. I filed a formal complaint with the Commission in February 2023 regarding an incident that occurred in March 2022. I provided a detailed written statement and a photograph of the incident. The Commissioner reviewed my file and in June 2023, the Commission sent me a formal letter stating that my complaint was not substantiated and that no further action would be taken. I felt this decision was unfair and untrue, so I wrote a strongly worded email to the Commissioner publicly criticising the investigation process and accusing them of negligence. I am worried that the Commissioner might sue me for defamation or harassment because of this email. I want to know if the Commission is legally protected from being sued for what was written in that email, even if they made a mistake in their investigation.

Detailed Analysis

In your situation, you are concerned about whether the Commission can sue you for your email, or if they are protected from legal action regarding their investigation. The law provides specific protections for the Commission and its members.

Under the Racial Discrimination Act, the Commission and the Commissioner have significant immunity. The law states that "The person is not liable to an action or other proceeding for damages for or in relation to an act done, or omitted to be done, in good faith in the performance, or purported performance, of any function"^[1]. This means that if the Commissioner made a mistake in your investigation in June 2023, they cannot be sued for damages as long as they were acting in 'good faith.' Good faith generally means acting honestly and without a corrupt motive, even if the decision turned out to be incorrect.

Furthermore, the law protects people who provide information to the Commission. It states that "a person is not liable to an action, suit or other proceeding in respect of loss, damage or injury of any kind suffered by another person merely because submission was made, the document or information was furnished or the evidence was given"^[1]. This protects the integrity of the complaint process.

Regarding your fear of being sued by the Commission for your email, the provided statutes focus on protecting the Commission from being sued by others, rather than protecting you from the Commission. However, the law is unsettled regarding whether your specific email constitutes 'harassment' or 'defamation' in a way that would trigger a lawsuit against you. The statutes provided do not explicitly state whether the Commission is prohibited from suing individuals for criticizing them, though they do provide the Commission with broad protections for their own official actions^[1].

State, provincial, or local laws in New South Wales may add further rules regarding defamation and harassment.

Statutory Citations

Related Questions

• Can I sue a Commission member for making a mistake in my complaint?
• Can someone other than the head of the human rights commission handle my complaint?
• Can I use both my state anti-discrimination claim and a federal human rights complaint for the same incident?