Reputation Management
We know that your reputation, like ours, is one of your most valuable assets. Building a respected brand takes years but it can be undermined in minutes. At RDJ, we understand the importance of safeguarding your reputation and offer comprehensive strategies to protect and enhance it.
Meet the team
In today’s hyper-connected, content-driven world, reputations can be damaged instantly, leading to significant losses in business, revenue and goodwill.
Threats to brand reputation derive from various sources including social media, legal disputes, regulatory investigations, content published online or in print, intellectual property infringement, defamation, misuse of private information, hacking and cyber security crises, data breaches, employees’ out of hours activities, human error and criminality and workplace stress/injury/discrimination.
Our Reputation Management team collaborates closely with RDJ’s Employment and Cybersecurity teams to deliver comprehensive, multi-disciplinary support to our clients. We work hand in hand with clients to develop tailored online and off-line reputation management strategies. We aim to anticipate threats and mitigate risk to reputation, by creating water-tight policies and responding appropriately and expeditiously when a crisis occurs, in order to protect business brands and talent.
Managing your reputation risk
RDJ boasts one of the most experienced media law teams in Ireland. We engage with clients to reassess their approach to reputational risk and to take a preventative approach to litigation and reputation management. By identifying risks early and putting robust safeguards in place, we help you stay ahead of potential issues—before they escalate. We offer:
- Customised Policies & Compliance Materials: Tailored compliance and policy material to address risks related to user-generated online content, social media, defamation, privacy breaches, intellectual property infringement, cyber security and compliance with professional ethical and legal obligations.
- Training & Education: Workshops for board members and employees focused on reputation management, social media best practices, defamation, privacy, intellectual property and cyber security.
- Reputation Health Checks: Comprehensive analysis of potential threats to identify vulnerabilities early.
- Reputation Crisis Planning: Development of a bespoke Reputation Crisis Plan, tailored to your organisation’s specific needs.
- Pre-Publication & Content Advice: Pre-publication/pre-broadcast advice on potentially contentious material including press releases, website content, blog posts, advertising and social media campaigns, to prevent potential disputes.
Crisis management
When a reputational crisis hits, every second counts. Our specialised team provides immediate, practical legal advice on the protections afforded by the law to effectively manage the crisis effectively. Years of experience advising high profile print, broadcast and online media organisations has given us unique insight into how the media works, enabling us to deliver solution focused practical advice. Our support includes:
- Legal Action & Defences: Commercial advice on taking/defending defamation, privacy, cyber security and intellectual property infringement litigation across all court levels.
- Remedies & Mitigation: Advising on the non-monetary remedies available under the Defamation Act 2009 such as apologies, declaratory orders, correction orders, and injunctive relief to prevent the publication of a defamatory statement.
- Online Defamation & Takedown Procedures: Expert advice on handling anonymous defamatory posts, social media takedown notices, and the legal implications of republishing or hyperlinking a defamatory post.
- Media & Legal Collaboration: Co-ordinated strategies with PR and Communications teams to manage media responses to a crisis situation, minimising the organisation’s exposure, protecting the reputation of a business and its key individuals.
Representative experience
- Acted for Wissam Al Mana, a high profile Qatari businessman in respect of High Court proceedings against Meta Platforms Ireland Limited (formerly Facebook Ireland Limited). The proceedings concerned a series of fake advertisements on the social media platform for cryptocurrency featuring his image and purported endorsement. RDJ assisted Mr Al Mana in achieving a significant confidential settlement in December 2023, pursuant to which Meta issued an apology.
- Acted for an Italian company in proceedings against a large social media company culminating in the successful resolution of the matter when the client’s social media account was re-instated.
- Acted for a large retailer in proceedings against Facebook (now Meta) and a lay litigant regarding the takedown of defamatory content relating to the retailer and its employees.
- Brought “Norwich Pharmacal” applications against some of the larger social media platforms such as Facebook and X (Twitter) seeking to identify persons behind anonymous social media accounts.
- Acted for corporate clients and high net worth individuals in proceedings against social media platforms relating to unlawful content posted on social media including defamatory content and content breaching GDPR.
Why choose RDJ?
With decades of combined experience in media law, our team is uniquely equipped to help you prevent, navigate and recover from reputational threats, ensuring your brand remains resilient in any situation.
Key Contacts