[REVISION HISTORY]

Bulgaria passes law to protect against SLAPP lawsuits

Updated 3 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-09-30 15:31 UTC → 2026-10-02 11:19 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The Bulgarian Parliament has passed legislation designed to protect journalists, activists, and other public-interest actors from Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP). These legal actions are often utilized by influential entities to intimidate or financially exhaust critics through costly defamation or reputational damage proceedings. While the law implements a 2024 European Union directive, it extends protections beyond the minimum EU requirements by covering purely domestic cases in addition to cross-border ones. Key provisions include the authority for courts to dismiss clearly unfounded claims at an early stage, shorter deadlines for judicial decisions, and stricter conditions for interim measures, such as asset seizures. Legal experts and officials noted that the reform aims to prevent the judicial process from being used as a tool for “economic or psychological pressure.” The protections apply to those exercising freedom of expression, including journalists, whistleblowers, scientists, and human rights defenders. Furthermore, the new rules will apply to ongoing proceedings that have not yet reached their first hearing. Human rights organizations have welcomed the move, noting that dozens of such cases currently in the Bulgarian court system have had a “paralysing effect on freedom of expression.”

Versions

Only revisions since CLSTR began indexing content versions appear here. Select a version to see what changed compared to the one before it.