Freedom of Speech in the Western World

Using several common law jurisdictions, including the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Europe, this book examines various rationales for freedom of speech and the extent to which the law protects it, the important similarities and differences in jurisprudence, and what these systems can learn from each other.

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The United States Bill of Rights was groundbreaking in providing constitutional recognition to freedom of speech. In the past century the Supreme Court has decided hundreds of cases concerning free speech, providing an established system of jurisprudence to analyze free speech cases. This book explains the development in the US case law and compares it to developments in similar jurisdictions such as Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom, and Europe. Anthony Gray critiques the jurisprudence of each nation studied, while noting some important similarities and differences in terms of how free speech is protected in the Western world, what causes these differences, what one system might learn from others, and whether convergence in approach can be expected.