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{{short description|Criminal offences under English common law}}
'''Seditious libel''' is a criminal offence under [[common law]] of printing written material with [[sedition|seditious]] purpose{{snd}}that is, the purpose of bringing contempt upon a [[political authority]]. It remains an offence in [[Canada]] but has been abolished in [[England and Wales]].<ref>L.L. Edwards, J.S. Edwards, P. K. Wells, ''Tort Law for Legal Assistants'', Cengage Learning, 2008, p. 390. "Libel refers to written defamatory statements; slander refers to oral statements. Libel encompasses communications occurring in 'physical form'... defamatory statements on records and computer tapes are considered libel..." {{ISBN?}}</ref>

American scholar [[Leonard Levy|Leonard W. Levy]] argues that seditious libel "has always been an [[accordion]]-like concept, expandable or contractible at the whim of judges".<ref>Levy, Leonard W. (1985) ''Emergence of a Free Press''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, p. 8. {{ISBN?}}</ref>

==England, Wales and Northern Ireland==
Under the common law of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, a  statement was seditious under the common law if it brought into "hatred or contempt" either the  [[British monarchy|King]] or his heirs, the government and constitution, either House of [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]], or the administration of justice; or if it incited people to attempt to change any matter of [[Church of England|Church]] or state established by law (except by lawful means); or if it promoted discontent among or hostility between British subjects. A person was only guilty of the offence if they had printed words or images and intend any of the above outcomes. Proving that the statement is true was not a defence but in the Trial of the Seven Bishops (1688), the seven [[Lords Spiritual]] including the [[Archbishop of Canterbury]] were acquitted of seditious libel because they had been exercising their [[right to petition]].<ref name="Trial of the Seven Bishops, June 29–30, 1688">{{cite web|title=Later state trials in Westminster Hall|url=https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/building/palace/westminsterhall/government-and-administration/later-state-trials-/|access-date=26 December 2021|website=UK Parliament}}</ref> As a common law offence whose sentence was not specified by statute, it was punishable with up to life imprisonment or an unlimited fine or both.{{citation needed|date=November 2016}}

Parliament abolished the offences of sedition and seditious libel in 2009.<ref name="CJA">{{Cite legislation UK |type=act |year=2009 |chapter=25 |act=Coroners and Justice Act 2009 |section=73}}</ref> However, there continue to be similar offences in other statutes, such as the [[Terrorism Act 2000]], which criminalises threats of action which are designed to "influence the government" or "to intimidate the public or a section of the public" for "the purpose of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause".<ref>{{cite legislation UK |type=act |year=2000 |chapter=11 |act=Terrorism Act 2000 |section=1}}</ref>

==Canada==
In Canada, seditious offences are defined by sections 59 to 61 of the [[Criminal Code (Canada)|Criminal Code]]. A seditious offence can be punished by imprisonment up to a maximum term of 14 years.<ref>[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/section-61.html#docCont Criminal Code, RSC 1985, c C-46, s 61.]</ref> The concept of a "seditious intention" is defined in part as follows: 
{{blockquote|
59(4) Without limiting the generality of the meaning of the expression "seditious intention", every one shall be presumed to have a seditious intention who

{{indented plainlist|style=font-size: initial|*(a) teaches or advocates, or
*(b) publishes or circulates any writing that advocates,}}

the use, without the authority of law, of force as a means of accomplishing a governmental change within Canada.<ref>[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/section-59.html#docCont ''Criminal Code'', RSC 1985, c C-46, s 59(4).]</ref>}}

However, the breadth of this section is reduced by s&nbsp;60, which provides "seditious intention" does not include communications made in good faith to criticise measures taken by the government, to point out errors or defects in government, or to point out matters that tend to produce ill-will between Canadians.<ref>[http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/section-60.html#docCont ''Criminal Code'', RSC 1985, c C-46, s 60.]</ref>

== Seditious speech in the United States ==
'''Seditious speech''' is speech directed at the overthrow of government. It includes speech attacking basic institutions of government, including particular governmental leaders.<ref>{{citation|url=http://heinonlinebackup.com/hol-cgi-bin/get_pdf.cgi?handle=hein.journals/uclalr52&section=35|volume=52|publisher=UCLA L. Rev.|pages=1359|date=2004–2005|title=Pedagogy of the First Amendment: Why Teaching about Freedom of Speech Raises Unique (and Perhaps Insurmountable) Problems for Conscientious Teachers and Their Students, The|author=Levinson, Sanford}}</ref> Its criminalization dates back at least as far as the [[Alien and Sedition Act]].

According to John Cohan, "A delicate line can be crossed, whereby lawful criticism of government may become seditious speech, where associating with others in robust criticism of government may become subversive activities punishable by law".<ref>{{citation|volume=17|publisher=St. John's J. Legal Comment|pages=199|year=2003|title=Seditious Conspiracy, the Smith Act, and Prosecution for Religious Speech Advocating the Violent Overthrow of Government|author=Cohan, John Alan|url=http://heinonlinebackup.com/hol-cgi-bin/get_pdf.cgi?handle=hein.journals/sjjlc17&section=16}}</ref> The ''[[Brandenburg v. Ohio]]'' [[U.S. Supreme Court]] decision maintains that seditious speech{{snd}}including speech that constitutes an incitement to violence{{snd}}is protected by the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution]] as long as it does not reach a level "where such advocacy is directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action and is likely to incite or produce such action".<ref>''Brandenburg v. Ohio'', {{ussc|395|444|1969}}</ref>

During [[World War&nbsp;II]], [[U.S. President]] [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] pressured U.S. Attorney General [[Francis Biddle]] to prosecute seditionists, but Biddle declined, believing it to be unwise.<ref>{{citation|title=Free speech in World War II: 'When are you going to indict the seditionists?'|author=G. R. Stone|publisher=International Journal of Constitutional Law|year=2004|url=http://icon.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/2/2/334.pdf}}{{dead link|date=May 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Today's anti-war activists are not prosecuted for seditious speech.<ref>{{citation|volume=45|publisher=Washburn L.J.|page=21|date=2005–2006|title=Patriotic Dissent; Herman, Susan N.|url=http://heinonlinebackup.com/hol-cgi-bin/get_pdf.cgi?handle=hein.journals/wasbur45&section=8}}</ref>

==History==
The crime of seditious libel was defined and established in [[England]] during the 1606 case ''De Libellis Famosis'' by the [[Star Chamber]]. The case defined seditious libel as criticism of public persons, the government, or King.<ref>[http://www.abanet.org/publiced/youth/sia/culture/courts.html American Bar Association:  Students in Action: "Cultures, Courts, and the U.S. Constitution".]</ref>

The phrase "seditious libel" and "[[blasphemous libel]]" were used interchangeably at that time, because of the strong unions between church and state. Blasphemy was later made a separate offence, and finally abolished with the passing of the [[Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006]]. Sedition and seditious libel were abolished by section 73 of the [[Coroners and Justice Act 2009]].<ref name="CJA"/> Sedition by an [[alien (law)|alien]] is still an offence under the Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act 1919.<ref>[http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo5/9-10/92/section/3 ''Aliens Restriction (Amendment) Act 1919'', UK 1919, c 92, s 3.]</ref>

The [[United States]]' [[Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798]] broke with the common law precedent of the time, in that it allowed for truth as a defense, though judges were not consistent in their rulings.

[[John Peter Zenger]] was arrested and imprisoned for seditious libel in 1734 after his newspaper criticized the colonial governor of New York. Zenger spent nearly 10 months in jail before being acquitted by a jury on August 5, 1735.<ref>Levy, pp. 38–45.</ref> One hundred years later, [[Nova Scotia]]'s [[Libel trial of Joseph Howe|Joseph Howe also won a jury acquittal]] on a charge of seditious libel after his newspaper printed allegations that local politicians and police were stealing from the people.<ref>Kesterton, W.H. (1967) ''A History of Journalism in Canada''. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart Limited, pp. 21–23.</ref>

Having severely censured the actions of the government in print with reference to the 1819 [[Peterloo Massacre]], Sir [[Francis Burdett]] was prosecuted at Leicester assizes, fined £1,000, and committed to prison by [[William Best, 1st Baron Wynford|Best, J.]] for three months for the crime of "composing, writing, and publishing a seditious libel" with explanation:

{{blockquote|My opinion of the liberty of the press is that every man ought to be permitted to instruct his fellow subjects; that every man may fearlessly advance any new doctrines, provided he does so with proper respect to the religion and government of the country; that he may point out errors in the measures of public men; but he '''must not impute criminal conduct''' to them. The liberty of the press cannot be carried to this extent without violating another equally sacred right; namely, the right of character. This right can only be attacked in a court of justice, where the party attacked has a fair opportunity of defending himself.<ref>Sources of English Constitutional History, Stephenson & Marcham.</ref><ref>Reports of State Trials, New Series, I, 49, 118 f.</ref>}}

==See also==
* [[Thoughtcrime]]
* [[Freedom of the press]]
* [[Blasphemy]]
* [[English defamation law]]
* [[Criminal anarchy]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{History of English criminal law}}

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[[Category:Sedition]]
[[Category:English criminal law]]