Denmark Defamation Laws: Civil, Criminal & Defences

In Denmark, defamation is both a criminal offence and a civil wrong. The Penal Code (Straffeloven) punishes statements apt to violate a person's honour under sections 267 to 270, and the Liability for Damages Act (Erstatningsansvarsloven) lets the injured person claim tort compensation (godtgorelse for tort) under section 26.

Is defamation civil, criminal, or both in Denmark?

It is both. Danish law treats attacks on a person's honour (aere) as criminal offences and, separately, as civil wrongs. The criminal offences sit in Chapter 27 of the Penal Code (Straffeloven), headed Freds- og aerekraenkelser, with the core defamation provisions in sections 267 to 270. On the civil side, an unlawful infringement of another person's honour can found a claim for tort compensation (godtgorelse for tort) under section 26 of the Liability for Damages Act (Erstatningsansvarsloven). The constitutional backdrop is section 77 of the Constitution (Grundloven), which guarantees freedom of expression but expressly subjects it to liability before the courts (under ansvar for domstolene) while prohibiting prior censorship. A single false or honour-violating statement can therefore expose the speaker to both a private criminal prosecution and a civil claim for compensation.

What counts as criminal defamation under the Penal Code?

The central offence is broad. Section 267 provides that a person who makes or spreads a statement or other communication, or engages in conduct, apt to violate another's honour is punished for defamation (aerekraenkelse) by a fine or imprisonment of up to one year. The 2019 reform merged the older separate provisions for insults and factual accusations into this single section, so both abusive terms and false factual allegations now fall under section 267. Section 268 creates an aggravated form: the penalty rises to imprisonment of up to two years where a serious accusation is untrue (usand), or where an accusation is made or spread through the content of a mass medium and is apt to cause substantial harm to the victim. Imprisonment was not removed in the reform; Danish law retains custodial penalties for defamation alongside fines.

Watch out: English-language summaries that state the maximum penalty is a fine or four months in prison describe the pre-2019 law. Since 1 January 2019, section 267 carries up to one year and section 268 up to two years.

How does civil liability work?

Civil liability runs through tort compensation. Section 26 of the Liability for Damages Act provides that a person responsible for an unlawful infringement of another's freedom, peace, honour (aere), or person must pay the injured party compensation for tort (godtgorelse for tort). Because honour is expressly listed, a defamatory statement that unlawfully harms reputation can ground a section 26 claim, and the court assesses the gravity of the infringement, including whether it was committed through a Chapter 27 offence. There is no fixed statutory cap on this compensation, and reported awards have varied with the seriousness and reach of the statement. Civil claims are commonly pursued alongside the private criminal case, since Danish defamation proceedings already run procedurally much like civil litigation.

What defences and privileges apply?

The central statutory defence is reasonable occasion. Section 269 exempts a defamatory statement from punishment where it was made with reasonable occasion (rimelig anledning). The assessment weighs whether the truth of an accusation was proven or rested on a sufficient factual basis (tilstraekkeligt faktuelt grundlag), and whether the statement was made in good faith (god tro) to protect a worthy or legitimate interest. Truth combined with a sufficient factual basis is therefore squarely part of the exemption. Section 269(2) bars a person from offering proof of conduct for which the subject was acquitted by a final judgment. Danish courts also balance freedom of expression under section 77 of the Constitution and Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights against reputation, and case law (applying European Court of Human Rights judgments) gives public figures lower protection and allows journalists latitude for public-interest reporting.

What remedies are available?

Danish law offers criminal, civil, and declaratory remedies. On the criminal side, the penalties are the fines and prison terms in sections 267 and 268. On the civil side, section 26 of the Liability for Damages Act allows tort compensation. Denmark also retains the remedy of mortifikation under section 270: where an accusation is unfounded (ubefoyet), the court, on the victim's request, enters a remark to that effect into the operative part of the judgment, a formal judicial declaration that the accusation is unproven. This declaratory remedy was kept (and renumbered to section 270) in the 2019 reform rather than abolished. Together, these allow a successful claimant to obtain compensation and a court statement clearing their name.

What is the limitation period?

The criminal limitation period depends on the maximum penalty. Under section 93 of the Penal Code, the period is two years where the offence carries no more than one year's imprisonment, which covers section 267, and five years where the offence carries up to four years, which covers the two-year maximum in section 268. The period generally runs from when the criminal act ceased and is interrupted when the accused is charged or notified. Because the section 267 window is short, a victim who wants a prosecution needs to act promptly.

How is online defamation treated?

The same Penal Code rules apply to statements made online, including on social media, forums, and review sites. Sections 267 and 268 are medium-neutral, and section 268 expressly treats an accusation spread through the content of a mass medium as an aggravating circumstance. For registered mass media (newspapers, broadcasters, and certain registered electronic outlets), the Media Liability Act (Medieansvarsloven) allocates special responsibility to the chief editor (ansvarshavende redaktor), and the 2019 reform increased editor fines. For ordinary user posts on platforms that are not registered under that Act, the general Penal Code and civil rules apply to the individual who made the statement.

Watch out: Spreading or repeating someone else's defamatory statement, including by reposting online, can itself fall within section 267. Liability is not confined to the person who first published the claim.

How do you bring a defamation claim in Denmark?

Defamation is privately prosecuted. Under section 275, the Chapter 27 honour offences are subject to private prosecution (privat patale), so the victim, not the public prosecutor, normally brings the case, with section 275(2) allowing public prosecution on the victim's request in specified situations, such as where the accused could lose public office or a serious accusation was spread anonymously. Private criminal defamation cases are tried in the ordinary courts under the procedural rules for civil cases, and a section 26 civil compensation claim can be pursued in the same proceedings. The remedies sought typically include a fine, tort compensation, and a mortifikation declaration. This is general information about Danish law, not legal advice for a specific situation.