Daily Mirror successfully defeats Sir James Dyson's libel case with honest opinion ... The newspaper's attack relied on "related facts" in the public domain - Right-wing activist sued for a Twitter "paedophile" attack after he was called a "racist" ... Reply to attack not a licence to defame ... Lachaux inferences - Prince Harry gets indemnity costs for his claim against Mirror Newspapers ... Piers Morgan explodes - Floyd Alexander-Hunt reports ... more
Category: Uncategorized
Duke of Sussex v MGN Limited
Hacking case in London ... Mirror Group Newspapers ... Significant damages awarded to the Duke of Sussex ... 38 private investigators engaged by the editors ... Board of directors not aware ... Editor Piers Morgan knew of the illegal newsgathering ... Some claimants time barred ... Report from Inforrm ... more
Public interest defence – first dibs
Indications that this might be a useful defence ... Focus on the publisher's belief, rather than conduct ... Factual accuracy not paramount ... Justice Lee in Heston Russell v ABC ... Professor David Rolph comments ... more
Pressing issues
Australian Press Council ... Press "watchdog" ... Delay, obstruction and torment ... The tortured road to getting a remedy for inaccurate, unfair, and prejudicial journalism ... The Louise Milligan case shows why the APC needs to replaced ... Richard Ackland reports ... more
Lisa Davies
Sydney Morning Herald editor Lisa Davies resigns ... Here she answers the Gazette's questions about changes at the paper during her time at the helm ... The future of print ... Big defamation cases ... The challenge of big tech ... And daily life in the editor's chair ... more
Fresh filings from Melbourne
New cases filed at the end of 2020 in the Victorian County Court and Supreme Court ... Post on Crime Stoppers Facebook page alleging a bodybuilder didn't pay his restaurant bill ... Victorian Labor Party heavyweight sues over Tweet about responsibility for the second Covid wave ... Allegation that hotel security contract was improperly obtained ... James Catlin reports ... more
Digital publishers and innocent dissemination
Attorney General Porter's vision for stage two of the defamation reforms ... Social media platforms and liability for third party posts ... It's timely to reprise Patrick George's submission to the Defamation Working Party ... Enforceability tripwires in other jurisdictions ... Immunity ... Role for an independent regulator to adjudicate take-down requests ... more
Burns v Gaynor (No. 2)
Expenditure of court resources disproportionate to the vindication sought ... Proportionality as a legal concept "has finally arrived" ... The basis for summarily dismissing long-running proceedings: Corresponding anti-discrimination proceedings in NCAT ... Earlier settlement ... Difficulty in assessing damages ... Limited publication ... Stephen Murray reports ... more
Wendy Dent v Don Burke
Alleged victim of Don Burke's sexual harassment unsuccessful in ACT Supreme Court defamation proceedings ... Wendy Dent sued over Burke's denials ... Invited to pose topless while auditioning for the role of a mermaid ... Court finds that the nature of an interview with Burke on A Current Affair showed that the former gardening host's denials were without credibility ... Consequently, the broadcast did not give rise to the imputations ... Stephen Murray reports ... more
Serge Benhayon v Esther Rockett
Solicitor for "charlatan" spiritual healer referred to the Legal Services Commissioner ... Unsatisfactory professional conduct or professional misconduct ... Correspondence with the defendant was bullying and harassing ... Inadequate apology ... Explanations and excuses "hollow and unconvincing" ... Public interest in having breaches in professional standards investigated by the LSC ... Stephen Murray reports ... more
Knockouts
Harmonnia Junus v Fairfax Media Publications Pty Ltd; Harmonnia Junus v Sing Tao Newspapers: McCallum J knocks out imputations in the case of the violinist, her violin, her ability as a musician and her father ... Christine Cronau v Elizabeth Nelson: Amended statement of claim knocked out in claim over Facebook posts about dietary disputes ... more
Dean Al Sesalim v The Herald and Weekly Times Pty Ltd
Former Manus Island detainee fights The Hun's contextual imputations ... Fair report of a protected matter ... "Poster boy" for asylum seekers ... Use of AAT findings to justify imputations ... Nick Bonyhady reports ... more