Comparative Advertising – A Human Right

The extent of the impact of the Human Rights Act on different areas of law is often speculated upon, however, it may still come as a surprise to some that the Act has an impact on issues of comparative advertising. The High Court in two recent decisions considered the impact of the Human Rights Act in deciding that it was not prepared to grant an injunction to prevent publication of this type of advertising. The Court concluded that the Act applied to comparative advertising and for it to grant an injunction where a human right may be affected, it must be satisfied "that the applicant is likely to establish that publication should not be allowed." This is slightly more stringent than the usual test, which is whether a "real prospect of success" is shown.