During the COVID-19 pandemic, Swedish Television broadcast a documentary in which a critical investigation was made of people with a negative attitude towards vaccines and their side effects. One of the persons examined brought an action for damages against the state, claiming that the person's right to respect for private life under the European Convention on Human Rights had been violated.
The Supreme Court has found that a balance of interests in the individual case between the right of the person under investigation to respect for her private life and the journalists' freedom of expression under the European Convention on Human Rights turns out to the detriment of the person under investigation and to the advantage of the freedom of expression. The Supreme Court notes that a very large public interest can trump even a significant invasion of privacy.
The action for damages was therefore dismissed on the merits.
"The documentary was not considered to entail any violation of the complainant's right to the respect for private life in view of the strong public interest in the publication," says Erik Sjöman, who was one of the judges in the case.
Case name
"The Vaccine Documentary"
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2025-12-30