📋 Tender Overview
Released on October 1, 2026
Saskatchewan residents will have enhanced protections against online misinformation as comes into force today.
The new Act modernizes and simplifies Saskatchewans defamation laws to reflect todays media landscape and ensure it effectively addresses online and digital communications. It replaces the century-old , which has been in place since 1909.
provides Saskatchewan with a modern legal framework that reflects todays communications environment, Justice Minister and Attorney General Tim McLeod, K.C. said. With the legislation now in force, courts have clearer tools to address harmful online content while maintaining the balance between freedom of expression and the protection of reputation.
will also reduce red tape for newspapers across Saskatchewan. The register of newspapers will be decommissioned, and newspaper publishers will no longer be required to make filings with the Registrar of Corporations under . This will ensure newspapers, broadcast and online media outlets are treated equally under the law.
This legislation also:
Removes wording that refers specifically to newspapers, so the law applies equally to all publishers, including digital and online media;
Authorizes courts to make take-down and de-indexing orders against third parties when harmful online content continues to circulate after its initial publication; and
Establishes a single cause of action for a publication and any subsequent republications of the same material by the same publisher.
provides Saskatchewan with a modern legal framework that is better suited to todays communications environment, Law Reform Commission Chair Michael Milani, K.C. said. The Act implements key recommendations aimed at protecting reputational rights, promoting clarity and fairness, and ensuring Saskatchewans defamation laws remain effective and relevant in the digital age.
Following an extensive consultation in March 2024, the Law Reform Commission of Saskatchewan released its final report calling for the reform and modernization of . As a result of their recommendations, eliminates the outdated distinction between libel and slander and refers instead to defamation, which encompasses both written and spoken statements that harm an individuals reputation.
The Law Reform Commission is responsible for reviewing and improving Saskatchewans laws to make them clearer and more up to date. For more information on the Commissions report and recommendations, visit: https://lawreformcommission.sk.ca.
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For more information, contact:
Kerri Ward-Davis
Justice and Attorney General
Regina
Phone: 306-787-8621
Email: jumedia@gov.sk.ca
