Can a business sue for defamation in Australia?

Most Australian companies cannot sue for defamation. The uniform Acts take that right away from corporations except "excluded corporations" — small companies and not-for-profits — but individuals within a business, and other causes of action, can fill some of the gap.

Written by Konrad Weber · Reviewed by Andrew Foster, Review Removal Specialist · Updated 2026-10-11

The general rule

Under the uniform defamation Acts, a corporation has no cause of action for defamation in relation to the publication of defamatory matter about it, unless it was an excluded corporation at the time of publication. The rule applies in every Australian state and territory, including Western Australia. The policy is that large corporations have other means of protecting their reputation and should not use defamation to suppress criticism.

Excluded corporations

A corporation is an excluded corporation if it is not a public body and, at the time of publication:

• its objects do not include obtaining financial gain for its members or corporators (broadly, a not-for-profit); or
• it employs fewer than 10 persons and is not related to another corporation.

Part-time employees are counted as an appropriate fraction of a full-time equivalent. A company that is part of a group, such as a trading company with a related holding company, generally fails the second limb even if it has very few staff. Whether a corporation qualifies is assessed at the date of publication, not the date of the claim.

In jurisdictions that have adopted the Stage 1 reforms, an excluded corporation must also show that the publication caused, or is likely to cause, serious financial loss. That is a demanding requirement for a single review; it usually needs evidence such as lost bookings or contracts that can be connected to the review. The jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction position is on the Defamation Act 2005 page.

Individuals within the business

The corporate bar does not stop individuals from suing in their own right if the review is about them. A review saying "the owner of this café is a thief" or "Dr Smith botched my procedure and lied about it" can identify a person, even if it is posted on the business's profile. Owners, directors, managers and practitioners can each be defamed individually.

Sole traders and partnerships are not corporations, so the bar does not apply to them; the people behind the business sue as individuals. For professional practices — law firms, medical and dental practices, accountants — the practitioner is often the person most directly identified. See the law firms industry page for the particular sensitivities there.

An individual must still prove publication, identification, a defamatory imputation and (in Stage 1 jurisdictions) serious harm to their own reputation, and must give a concerns notice before suing in those jurisdictions.

Injurious falsehood

A corporation that cannot sue in defamation may be able to sue for injurious falsehood. The High Court in Palmer Bruyn & Parker v Parsons (2001) confirmed the elements: a false statement about the plaintiff's goods, services or business; published to a third party; with malice; causing actual damage. Malice means more than carelessness — for example, knowing the statement is false or being recklessly indifferent to its truth, or publishing it with an improper purpose such as harming a competitor.

Injurious falsehood is harder to win than defamation: the plaintiff bears the burden of proving falsity and malice, and must prove actual financial loss. It tends to suit cases with strong evidence of deliberate falsehood, such as a competitor posting invented complaints.

Australian Consumer Law options

Where false reviews are posted by someone acting in trade or commerce — most obviously a competitor — the business may have options under the ACL, including s 18 (misleading or deceptive conduct). A private applicant can seek an injunction and damages. This does not help against a genuine customer acting in a private capacity. See the Australian Consumer Law page and the legal position on fake reviews.

Evidence that matters

Whichever route is chosen, the same evidence tends to decide it: a dated copy of the review and the reviewer's profile, records showing whether the reviewer was ever a customer, anything that shows the allegations are false, and any measurable change in enquiries or bookings after the review appeared. Headcount records at the date of publication are also relevant if the company may be an excluded corporation. The guide to evidence for review complaints sets out what to gather.

The practical picture

Put together, a typical company with a damaging review has three realistic options: an individual within the business sues personally (if identified and seriously harmed); the company pursues injurious falsehood or ACL remedies (if it can prove falsity, malice or trade-or-commerce conduct and loss); or — most commonly — the business asks Google to remove the review under its policies or through the legal removal channel. Litigation is slow and expensive and may draw more attention to the review. The complaint route costs far less, though it depends on Google's decision.

For example, imagine a 40-employee building company with a review alleging fraud. The company itself cannot sue for defamation. If the review names the managing director, she may have a personal claim; if the reviewer turns out to be a competitor, injurious falsehood or the ACL may be open. In parallel, a well-supported complaint to Google may resolve the issue more quickly. Our defamatory Google reviews service works on that complaint stage.

If you have a review that makes false allegations about your business or the people in it, request a free assessment below. We will tell you whether there is a realistic basis for a complaint to Google — and whether you may want to speak to a lawyer as well.

Sources

• Defamation Act 2005 (NSW) — NSW Legislation
• Defamation Act 2005 (Vic) — Victorian Legislation
• Defamation Act 2005 (Qld) — Queensland Legislation
• Defamation Act 2005 (WA) — WA Legislation
• Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth), Schedule 2 (Australian Consumer Law)