Buying Silence: How oligarchs, corporations and plutocrats use the law to gag their critics

Book of the Year - The Spectator

THE ERA OF WIN AT ALL COSTS, WHETHER LEGAL OR ILLEGAL , IS UPON US. THIS IS THE ERA OF THE SLAPP CASE

“As an outstanding libel lawyer, David Hooper’s masterful investigation is a terrifying exposé of Britain’s corrupt judicial system.” - Tom Bower, writer and author of 'Maxwell: The Outsider'

“Those with power have often been able to manipulate the law to buy their way out of trouble. But they also do the opposite. They buy the law and weaponise it against those who call them out. A new kind of warfare – lawfare – is in operation. Crush your opponent in the courts; pay lawyers so much money their ethics go out the window. A shocking and vitally important book.” - Baroness Helena Kennedy of the Shaws KC

Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation, or SLAPPs, are designed to censor, intimidate and silence critics of the powerful and wealthy by burdening them with aggressive opposing lawyers, heavy legal costs and deeply intrusive – and sometimes illegal – private investigations until they abandon the case.

The UK has the unenviable accolade of being the number one destination for such cases. Billionaire oligarchs, often ex-convicts and linked to organised crime, come here to launder their reputations through suing for libel – even when what’s been written about them is entirely true. Even worse, more often than not they either win their cases or scare their opponents into self-censorship, in a devastating blow to investigative journalism, media freedom and the public interest.

In this timely, insightful and often shocking book, David Hooper, veteran media lawyer, explores how the power of money enables the very wealthy – including Robert Maxwell, Nadhim Zahawi and McDonald’s – to crush their critics through SLAPP tactics. From billionaire oligarchs to powerful corporations, from corrupt politicians to super-rich businesspeople, Hooper describes how those with something to hide tried to stop you knowing about it, how their lawyers were willing to help them and – most importantly – what the government urgently needs to do to stop them.