The apology as a remedy in defamation in Malaysia and Hong Kong

This article is about the apology as a remedy in defamation in Malaysia and Hong Kong. An apology order is a “specialised” mandatory injunction that directs the defendant to tender an apology to the plaintiff, either verbally in open court or by publishing it in writing or in electronic form in other specified media. Apart from the law in Malaysia and Hong Kong, the article considers the judicial treatment of apology orders in selected common law jurisdictions to gain a deeper understanding of the evolution and emergence of this remedy. Our article contributes to the literature on the apology in defamation by identifying, from the cases, the circumstances in which the apology order may be granted. We conclude that a court may consider an apology order only when the damages alone (compensatory and aggravated) are, in the opinion of the court, inadequate to vindicate the harm done by the defendant.