When Online Criticism Becomes Defamation: Lessons from Hall v Aldridge [No. 2]

Writer beware! What you need to know before venting your frustrations on social media about your local government

A long-running court battle ended in the WA Supreme Court earlier this year when a suburban Perth mayor won a quarter of a million dollars in a lengthy defamation battle with one of his own constituents in Hall v Aldridge [No. 2] [2026] WASC 3 found that the rate payer defendant, Mr Richard Aldridge, to have defamed City of Canning Mayor, Mr Patrick Hall, over a series of social media posts made in 2022.

The case is the most recent illustration of how the Local Government Act 1995 (WA) (LG Act) balances freedom of expression, on the one hand, and the responsibilities of local government officials to act with integrity and avoid causing harm through their communications, on the other.