Alwis v. Seneviratne – sllr 1980 volume 2 page 268

In ALWIS v. SENEVIRATNE, the court addressed whether statements made by the defendant in an application to the Rent Control Board were protected by absolute or qualified privilege in a defamation claim. It was held that proceedings before the Rent Control Board are judicial in nature, attracting the immunity of absolute privilege for statements made during those proceedings. Alternatively, even if only qualified privilege were considered, it was determined that the defendant’s statements were made with honest belief and lacked malice, thus retaining protection. This decision relied on relevant provisions of the Rent Restriction Act, the Penal Code, and established case law, clarifying that defamation claims based on statements before quasi-judicial bodies are generally barred by privilege