McNae's Essential Law for Journalists

Sian Harrison is a partner at Maltin PR and a member of the NCTJ Media Law Examinations Board. Sian is also an external examiner for Cardiff University's School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies as well as being a member of HMCTS Media Working Group. She is an experienced journalist, court reporter, and media consultant.Gill Phillips is a freelance editorial legal consultant. She was the Guardian's director of editorial legal services between 2009 and 2023, during which time she advised on major investigations such as Wikileaks, Edward Snowden, phone hacking, the Panama, Paradise and Pandora Papers and the Uber Files. Before joining the Guardian, Gill was an in-house lawyer at the BBC and Times Newspapers. She is a visiting lecturer on the Journalism MA at City St Georges, University of London.Charlie Moloney is a media law commentator, trainer, and journalist. He has reported from courts for national publishers since 2018 and has successfully challenged numerous reporting restrictions. In 2025, supported by the Media Lawyers Association, he challenged a coroner's refusal to disclose the outcome of a written inquest. He provides legal training and consultancy and is a senior examiner for the NCTJ.

• Part 1: The Landscape of Law, Ethics and Regulation 1: Introduction 2: Press regulation 3: Broadcast regulation 4: Journalism avoiding unjustified intrusion Part 2: Crime, Courts and Tribunals 5: Crime DS media coverage prior to any court case 6: Crime DS categories and definitions 7: Magistrates' courts DS summary cases 8: Magistrates' courts DS the most serious criminal cases 9: Crown courts and appeal courts 10: Children and young persons in court proceedings 11: Anonymity for victims and alleged victims of sexual offences, human trafficking, female genital mutilation and forced marriage offences 12: Court reporting DS other restrictions 13: Civil courts 14: Family courts 15: Open justice and access to court information 16: Challenging in the courts 17: Coroners' courts 18: Tribunals and public inquiries 19: Contempt of court Part 3: Defamation and Related Law 20: Defamation DS definitions and dangers 21: Who can sue for defamation and what they must prove 22: Defamation defences 23: The public interest defence in defamation law 24: The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 25: Slander and malicious falsehood Part 4: Confidentiality, Privacy and Copyright 26: Breach of confidence 27: Privacy 28: Data protection 29: Copyright Part 5: Information and Expression 30: Reader's postings and online safety issues 31: Reporting elections 32: National security and official secrets 33: Journalists' sources 34: The risks of being charged with other criminal offences 35: The right to take photographs, film and record Part 6: Online Chapters 36: Other UK jurisdictions 37: The Freedom of Information Act 2000 38: Other information rights and access to meetings 39: Boundaries to expression DS hate and obscenity 40: Terrorism and the effect of counter-terrorism law 41: Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) Appendix 1 The Editors' Code of Practice Appendix 2 Schedule 1 to the Defamation Act 1996