The Act is certainly not confined to threats of violence.  See Ferguson v

British Gas Trading Ltd [2010] 1 WLR 785.  If it applied to British Gas

threatening disconnection etc, it is difficult to see that it could not

apply to cyber bullying.

Keith

--On 14 June 2010 16:20 +0800 "A.P. Simester" <simester@nus.edu.sg> wrote:

>

> I would think it likely that the Act applies. The scope of what counts as

> 'harassment' is undefined and there seems not reason why it could not

> reasonably be thought to include this kind of case. Section 1(2) in

> effect provides that if a reasonable person [i.e. the magistrate] would

> interpret D’s course of conduct as amounting to harassment, then that

> course of conduct is harassment.

>

> Andrew

>

> ________________________________________

> From: Osuji, Onyeka [O.K.Osuji@exeter.ac.uk]

> Sent: 13 June 2010 21:13

> To: Jason Neyers; obligations@uwo.ca

> Subject: RE: Protection from Harassment Act 1997 & bullying

>

> The Act might apply. In Thomas v News Group Newspapers [2001] EWCA Civ.

> 1233, a claim was sustained against a newspaper for distress and anxiety

> caused by a series of publications revealing the identity and workplace

> of a police officer. The police officer was attacked for reporting her

> colleagues’ racist and discriminatory conduct against an asylum seeker.

>

> Onyeka

>

>

> Dr Onyeka Osuji

> Lecturer in Law

> University of Exeter

> School of Law, Cornwall Campus

> Penryn Cornwall TR10 9EZ UK

> Telephone: +44 (0)1326 253783 (Internal: 2783)

> Fax: +44 (0) 1326 254267

> Email: O.K.Osuji@exeter.ac.uk

> Web: http://www.exeter.ac.uk/cornwall

> ________________________________________

> From: Jason Neyers [jneyers@uwo.ca]

> Sent: 11 June 2010 18:36

> To: obligations@uwo.ca

> Subject: ODG: Protection from Harassment Act 1997 & bullying

>

> Dear Colleagues:

>

> Would the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 be wide enough to protect

> a person from teenage cyber-bullying in the form of posting embarrassing

> pictures and demeaning comments about another teenager on the web as a

> form of revenge for some perceived slight?  I am thinking of the kind of

> behavior that does not involve threats of physical violence. Does anyone

> know of any cases dealing with this issue?

>

> Cheers,

>

> --

> Jason Neyers

> Associate Professor of Law

> Faculty of Law

> University of Western Ontario

> N6A 3K7

> (519) 661-2111 x. 88435

----------------------

KM Stanton, Law

Tel: 0117 954 5307

Email: K.Stanton@bristol.ac.uk