Requiring Instagram ‘pin’ and Facebook ‘feature’ for corrective notice not onerous: Federal Court

Ruling deems social media posts proper relief for contravening Racial Discrimination Act Australia’s Federal Court has ruled that asking parties to “pin” a corrective notice on top of their Instagram profile and “feature” the notice on Facebook was a redress proportionate to the nature and extent of the wrong they committed.  Wertheim v Haddad (No 2), [2025] FCA 820, arose from the Federal Court’s declaration that the first and second respondents contravened s 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth) by making and publishing three lectures on Rumble.  The court deemed the speeches – with statements insulting Jewish individuals in general and repeating racist stereotypes about them – reasonably likely to offend, insult, humiliate, or intimidate Jewish members of the Australian community.  The court ordered the respondents to remove the lectures, refrain from repeating or continuing their acts considered unlawful, and pay the applicants’ proceeding costs. The applicants requested relief by publishing notices of the court’s conclusion that the respondents had contravened part IIA of the Racial Discrimination Act on the relevant social media platforms for 30 days. The applicants wanted the respondents to use Facebook’s “feature” tool and Instagram’s “pin” tool.  The respondents accepted the correction notice’s proposed
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