A Crisis of Democratic Accountability

Randall Stephenson is a scholar of defamation law and public law. He completed his DPhil in law at the University of Oxford in 2017. Before attending Oxford, he studied first amendment jurisprudence at Columbia University (LLM) and practiced litigation at Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP in Toronto, Canada.

Part A: Introduction to the Problem of Public Libel Law
Overview of Part A
1. Balancing Freedom of Expression and Reputation in Constitutional Context
I. Defamation’s Moving Target: Balancing Free Expression and Reputation
II. Overview of Public Libel Doctrine
III. Continuum of Doctrinal Solutions
IV. Public Libel Law’s Theory-Doctrine Rift
V. Chapter Conclusion
2. Methodological Barriers to Democratic Theorising
I. Overview
II. Methodological Barrier I
III. Democratic Theorising in Public Libel Jurisprudence
IV. Methodological Barrier II
V. Moving Forward

Part B: Undertheorising Democratic Accountability: Comparative Law Analysis of Public Libel Doctrine
Overview of Part B
3. Indeterminate Balancing in Public Libel Doctrine: Generic Rules and ‘Implied Rights’
I. United States
II. Australia
III. Chapter Conclusion
4. Overlooking the Checking Function of the Press
I. Overview
II. Strasbourg Jurisprudence
III. United Kingdom
IV. New Zealand
V. Chapter Conclusion
5. Conflating Meiklejohnian Theory and the Checking Function of the Press
I. Overview
II. United Kingdom
III. Canada
IV. Chapter Conclusion

Part C: Reasserting Democratic Accountability
Overview of Part C
6. Distinguishing the Checking Function from Meiklejohnian Theory: Lessons from Public Accountability and Neo-Republicanism
I. Confronting a Conceptual Stalemate: ‘Representation’ and ‘Accountability’
II. Public Accountability Scholarship
III. Neo-Republicanism: A Return to Institutional Design
IV. Chapter Conclusion
7. A Revised Analytical Framework: Accountability Dysfunctions, Public Libel Doctrine, and the Institutional Press
I. Overview
II. Accountability Dysfunctions
III. The Institutional Press as a Horizontal Accountability Mechanism
IV. Public Libel Doctrine: Balancing Reputation and Freedom of Expression in Contemporary Democracies
V. Chapter Conclusion

Part D: Restoring Democratic Accountability
Overview of Part D
8. Assessing Britain’s Political Accountability Profile
I. Selecting a Law Reform Candidate
II. Britain’s Primary Accountability Mechanisms
III. Britain’s Secondary Accountability Mechanisms
IV. Chapter Conclusion
9. Reinstating the Checking Function in Britain’s Constitutional Context
I. Law Reform Recommendations
II. Discussion
III. Chapter Conclusion
Conclusion—Prospective Challenges to Public Libel Law Reform