Speaking about sexual violence

About this guide

This guide was produced by The Gemini Project and Good Law Project for Independent Sexual Violence Advisers (ISVAs) to help you support survivors of sexual violence to tell their story. It was last updated on 16 April 2025. If you have any questions or suggestions, please get in touch.

Disclaimer

This guide does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied on as such. Instead, specialist defamation law advice should be sought on a survivor’s specific circumstances.

Many survivors of sexual violence want to speak out about what happened to them – to help them to process what happened, to protect others, or to help others who have been through similar trauma, among other reasons.

While it is rare for survivors of sexual abuse to face legal action for speaking out, doing so carries a risk of being sued for defamation that should be taken seriously. Defending court proceedings can be financially devastating and mentally exhausting.

This guide explains how survivors can minimise the legal risks of speaking out and what survivors should do if they receive a legal letter from their abuser or abuser’s lawyer.

• Defamation is when a person makes an allegation that causes or is likely to cause serious harm to another person’s reputation. Allegations of sexual assault or rape will almost always be considered as causing serious harm to a person’s reputation.
• It is possible to be sued for both saying and writing defamatory allegations. This includes what is said in text messages, social media posts (Facebook, X, TikTok, Instagram, etc), voice notes, emails, and during conversations.
• The law allows people to make defamatory allegations if they are substantially true. But to defend a defamatory allegation as true, the person making the allegation must be able to prove it. This is often very difficult to do. Although the standard of proof is the “balance of probabilities”, which is lower than in criminal cases, judges are cautious to make findings that people have committed serious wrongdoing. It can also be a big and expensive task to collect all the evidence needed to prove an allegation.
• Nina Cresswell, a survivor of sexual violence, was sued for defamation by her abuser for naming him online. After a three-year legal battle, Nina proved that what she said was true. Nina won the case, but it put her under huge mental and financial strain.
• There are other defences to defamation claims, including that a defamatory allegation is a survivor’s honest opinion or is in the public interest. These defences are complex. As a result, survivors should seek advice from specialist defamation lawyers before making potentially defamatory allegations to reduce the legal risk.
• A person must normally bring a claim for defamation within one year of publication e.g. within one year of the social media post, text message or other form of communication.
• Defamation law is often abused. Some who wish to silence survivors, journalists and others who speak out on issues of political or societal significance will claim that they have been defamed and pursue legal claims using aggressive and intimidating tactics. Such claims are referred to as strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), lawfare, and abusive litigation.  Specialist defamation lawyers can advise on whether a claim is a SLAPP and how to respond to it.

Speaking to the police

Survivors cannot be sued for anything they tell the police in the context of reporting a crime. In addition, any person who reports a sexual offence to the police has a lifelong right to anonymity. That right is automatic so long as the survivor does not waive that anonymity by speaking publicly about what happened to them (e.g. on social media or in the media). If a survivor does not make a police report, they will not have the right of anonymity.

Speaking to a therapist, ISVA or other specialist support

Survivors can feel confident speaking to therapists, ISVAs, and other specialist advisers who can be trusted to keep those conversations confidential. This is because confidential conversations with specialist advisers are very unlikely to harm an abuser’s reputation due to their private nature. 

Speaking to friends and family

For many survivors, getting support from family and friends following sexual violence is critical. Survivors should only speak to people they trust when talking about what happened and ask that what they say is not repeated to others. This will mitigate the defamation risk because if an abuser finds out a survivor has told others about what happened, that may cause abusers to consider bringing a defamation claim.

Speaking publicly

If it is important to a survivor to speak about their experience publicly, there are steps they can take to mitigate the risks:

• Consider whether it is necessary to name an abuser. If a survivor can avoid using their abuser’s name, or other information that might identify them, when speaking about what happened to them, this will reduce the chance of the survivor being sued. 
• Say the minimum necessary. If a survivor believes that their abuser poses a risk to others, they should say the minimum necessary to the smallest number of people necessary to tackle the risk. This will make it easier for a survivor to defend what they have said as having been in the public interest.
• Be precise. Survivors should stick to what they know to be true.
• Makes notes about motivation. If a survivor wants to speak out because they believe it is in the public interest and for the good of others to do so, survivors should make a note to themselves explaining why they believe what they are doing is in the public interest and why they think that belief is reasonable.
• Wait for criminal proceedings to be concluded. Survivors should not speak about their abuser publicly if their abuser is under police investigation or if they have been charged. Speaking publicly at that time can cause prejudice to those criminal proceedings, which can be a criminal offence of contempt of court. If an abuser is found guilty of a criminal offence, the legal risks to the survivor of speaking about that offence will be significantly reduced.
• Consider speaking to the media. If a survivor believes the actions of their abuser might be of interest to national or regional media, the survivor could consider contacting trusted journalists. Journalists may publish a survivor’s story and will get legal advice to reduce the legal risks. Journalists should keep survivors’ stories confidential if they are asked to do so.
• Do not share intimate photos or videos of abusers or others. Doing so can be a criminal offence.
• Avoid sharing private information about abusers or others. Sharing a person’s private information can breach their right to privacy, even if it is true. As a result, survivors should seek legal advice before sharing private information such as private text messages, details about a person’s health, details about specific sexual encounters, or details about a person’s sex life generally.
• Seek legal advice. We are all entitled to say defamatory things that are true, that are our honest opinions, and that are in the public interest. There are other defences too, but the law is complicated. Defamation lawyers can help survivors to craft wording which they are best able to defend. It is recommended to speak to a defamation specialist as they will understand the law best. See the key contacts below for additional information.

What should survivors do if they receive a letter from their abuser or their abuser’s lawyer threatening legal action?

1. Don’t panic. Legal letters are often written in an aggressive tone to frighten survivors and to persuade them to withdraw their allegations. Receiving a legal letter does not necessarily mean that a survivor is in the wrong or that an abuser has the money or desire to issue a court claim.
2. Speak to a defamation solicitor as soon as possible. A specialist defamation solicitor will assess the abuser’s claim, advise the survivor on the risks, and work with them to prepare a response. The organisations listed below can refer survivors to a defamation solicitor for some initial advice at a reasonable price or for free. If a survivor has home insurance, they should check their policy as some have helplines for legal issues and will cover legal expenses for defamation claims. Legal aid is not available for defamation claims except in exceptional circumstances, for example where a survivor is particularly vulnerable.
3. Don’t ignore it. Recipients of legal letters should respond with a short email to let the sender know it has been received and that they are taking legal advice. The recipient or their lawyer should then respond to the points the abuser, or their lawyer, has made normally within 14 days of receiving their letter and sooner if possible.

• Good Law Project – A not-for-profit campaign group which seeks to use the law for good, has expertise in handling defamation claims, and provides legal advice at low cost and pro bono.
• Centre for Women’s Justice – A charity dedicated to eradicating male violence against women and girls.
• Law Works – A charity that connects individuals with solicitors offering free legal advice and assistance to those who cannot afford to pay.
• Advocate – A charity that connects individuals with barristers offering free legal advice and court representation to those who cannot afford to pay.
• UK Anti-SLAPP Coalition – A working group of people targeted by SLAPPs, lawyers, human rights defenders, media organisations, and others in civil society, which seeks to highlight SLAPPs, support the targets of SLAPPs, and make the case for structural change.

For more detailed information, we recommend reading the Centre for Women’s Justice ‘Frequently Asked Questions on defamation and civil claims against perpetrators for survivors of sexual violence’.