Interviews with leading anti-SLAPP lawyers: Vanja Juric
The art of SLAPP defence is a selective field. Most lawyers have only a vague idea of SLAPPs, if any, as the topic is still barely present in their studies and existing regular training.
As part of the PATFox project, we have been organising training and networking meetings for lawyers to change this. And we have talked to experts who have already gained a lot of experience with SLAPPs. In this, the fourth of a series of interviews (see also our previous interview with Tomas Langer), we present their experiences and perspectives.
Vanja Jurić is a Croatian attorney with an independent law practice since 2011. She graduated from the Faculty of Law in Zagreb in 2007, after which she continued her education at the Faculty of Political Sciences, in the Advanced Master of European Studies program. In 2017, she completed the Harvard Law School course CopyrightX. In addition to practicing law, Vanja is a member of the European Commission's expert group for SLAPP lawsuits and one of the founders and lawyers of the Center for the Protection of Freedom of Expression of the Croatian Journalists' Association. In her work, in addition to other branches of law, she is particularly engaged in issues of media law, freedom of expression and intellectual property rights.
Can you characterise the SLAPP cases you have handled in recent years - is there a ‘classic’ SLAPP case, or is it difficult to generalise? What makes these cases stand out?
Croatia is recognized as an EU member state with a particularly high number of SLAPP cases, so I handled quite a lot of them over the past years. There have been many classic, text book examples. Since the beginning of my career, I have been representing media publishers and journalists, so I am well acquainted with the principles and standards of freedom of expression and with the significance of public interest and public participation. That is why I was able to recognize this specific type of cases early on. It certainly requires knowledge and experience.
SLAPP cases stand out because usually there is an obvious imbalance of power between the plaintiff and the defendant, and more importantly - such claims clearly lack merit, meaning they are unfounded or obviously exaggerated. In Croatia, this was usually accompanied by relatively high damages claims and by more than one lawsuit brought by the same plaintiff.
Do you think there are good practical ways to deal with this quickly?
Regretfully, I don't think there is a quick fix to this problem, since many EU member states have been struggling with the same issues for a long time. It shows that this is not a sporadic problem in certain member states, but a systematic abuse of rights that requires a systematic approach. This kind of abusive proceedings have been used in courts all around the world for a long time and now we finally recognized them as a specific type of cases and gave them a name. Now we are more resilient and more ready to respond, to provide legal mechanisms to the courts and give protection to the victims. In Croatia, for example, we have had and we still have some general legal provisions that the courts could have used to suppress this type of lawsuits, but they never did. So from my experience, it really seems that the only efficient way to deal with SLAPP's is to start implementing the directive and recommendations, incorporate them into our national legal systems and start creating case law based on these foundations. It will not be quick or easy but hopefully we are getting there.
What is the significance of SLAPP for your professional practice? Are such cases different from other cases?
They certainly are different because they have specific elements and consequences that other cases do not have. Victims are often exposed to significant pressure and fear for their own well-being since the very purpose of these abuses is to create a threatening atmosphere. In such circumstances lawyers, in addition to their professional role, have to take on a number of other roles as well. Another problem is that we did not have, and in Croatia we still do not have, clear legal mechanisms that we can effectively use in order to protect our clients.
Are SLAPP cases more stressful than other cases?
They are, a lot is at stake, especially when the cases are directed against non-profit organizations or journalists and activists in their personal capacity. They usually don't have any financial resources or sufficient support so the victims experience fear for their safety and safety of their families. Often there is more than one lawsuit, the damages claims and the costs are high and all of those circumstances contribute to our feeling of personal responsibility. But that is also a part of our job and it is necessary, also in terms of professional ethics, to show understanding and provide all necessary support.
How do you perceive the professional discourse on SLAPP in the past 2-3 years? How is the topic addressed and discussed in the legal profession in your eyes, what (in)understanding is developing for it in the judiciary? And how to projects like PATFox impact this?
Both in the Croatian and in the European context, a public debate about this problem only started during the last couple of years. Non-governmental organizations that have been intensively engaged really did an incredible job in this regard. In the legal profession there is a lot more understanding about what SLAPP's are, but this refers primarily to my colleagues who have already been familiar with the topic and have previously been engaged in related legal areas. The situation is also very similar in judiciary - there is some progress but for the most part only in the context of recognizing the term SLAPP.
When it comes to the role of PATfox and similar projects, I am completely certain that education is the condition and assumption of success of all other measures we have been discussing. And not only education of judges, but education of lawyers, journalists, NGOs and everyone else who might come into contact with SLAPP cases. The thing is, we can have the best laws, but if we lack people who know how to apply those laws, we haven't really done much. That is why it is very important to keep insisting on these projects.
What is your outlook - what role will SLAPPs play in the next 2-3 years?
It's hard to predict. At the moment, the statistics show that the number of such cases in Croatia is decreasing. It seems that public reactions and awareness raising campaigns really made a difference. However, when it comes to fundamental rights and especially media freedoms, there have always been better and safer periods, then followed by periods of increased number of lawsuits. It depends a lot on the state of a society as a whole, on politics, people in power and the level of their dedication to safeguard basic rights. I would like to believe that we are at a point where we understand that freedom of expression and public participation have an important role in our democracies and have to remain strongly protected. Everything else is a path to undemocratic regimes that contradict the foundations of the European Union.