@misc{8764983,
  abstract     = {{A  judgment of the Antwerp Court of Appeal of 9 June 2022 confirms strong support for investigative journalism on issues of public interest, while at the same time acknowledging the detrimental impact of SLAPPs (Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation). The case concerns a complaint by project developer Erik Van der Paal against the chief editor and a journalist of the news site Apache. The chief editor, Karl van den Broeck, and Apache journalist Stef Arends were accused of having stalked Erik Van der Paal of the NV Land Invest Group (Section 422bis Criminal Code) and of violating the Personal Data Processing Act (Privacy Act). Van der Paal also alleged a violation of his right to his own image (portrait right) and infringement of the presumption of innocence. He started these criminal proceedings because Stef Arends had used a hidden camera to make images of Van der Paal welcoming a number of guests to his birthday party in 't Fornuis, a well-known top restaurant in Antwerp. The images were made secretly from the public road and were published on the Apache website as an illustration of the close and friendly relationship between the building promoter and members of the Antwerp city council. After Apache's acquittal in January 2021, Van der Paal lodged an appeal. The Court of Appeal's ruling has now landed like a boomerang on Van der Paal. The Court validated the counter claim of Apache arguing that the lodging of an appeal in this case was an abuse of process. The judgment makes it clear that, with this and other legal actions against (journalists of) Apache Van der Paal did not act as a prudent and careful person, but essentially had the intention of (financially) exhausting Apache and stopping the critical reporting by Apache about Van der Paal.}},
  author       = {{Voorhoof, Dirk}},
  keywords     = {{Freedom of expression,stalking,privacy,SLAPP,investigative journalism,abusive of litigation}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{22/06/2022}},
  publisher    = {{KU Leuven Public Law}},
  series       = {{Leuven Public Law Blog}},
  title        = {{Belgian news site acquitted for stalking and breach of privacy in SLAPP-case}},
  url          = {{https://www.leuvenpubliclaw.com/news-site-acquitted-for-stalking-and-breach-of-privacy-in-belgian-slapp-case/}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}