Times pays damages to advocacy group falsely linked to Reading killer – The Guardian

Posted December 7th, 2020 in compensation, damages, defamation, Islam, media, murder, news, terrorism by sally

‘The Times has apologised to the advocacy organisation Cage and agreed to pay it £30,000 in damages for suggesting it was supporting a man who stabbed three people to death in what police said was a terrorist rampage in a Reading park.’

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The Guardian, 4th December 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Johnny Depp loses bid to appeal libel case ruling against him – The Independent

Posted November 27th, 2020 in appeals, defamation, domestic violence, media, news by tracey

‘Johnny Depp has been denied the right to appeal by the High Court following its ruling which found that the claims that he assaulted his ex-wife Amber Heard were “substantially true”.’

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The Independent, 27th November 2020

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Rebekah Vardy wins in first stage of Coleen Rooney libel action – The Guardian

Posted November 23rd, 2020 in defamation, internet, news by sally

‘Coleen Rooney’s Instagram post about the suspected source of leaks of private information in the so-called “Wagatha Christie” row “clearly identified” Rebekah Vardy as having “secretly informed the Sun newspaper of Ms Rooney’s private posts and stories”, a judge ruled on Friday.’

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The Guardian, 20th November 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney ‘Wagatha Christie’ libel case set for first High Court hearing – Daily Telegraph

Posted November 19th, 2020 in defamation, internet, media, news by sally

‘Rebekah Vardy has strongly denied Coleen Rooney’s accusations about leaks to a tabloid newspaper, and has sued for damages for libel.’

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Daily Telegraph, 19th November 2020

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Depp’s Defeat: A Human Rights Victory – Each Other

Posted November 17th, 2020 in defamation, domestic violence, freedom of expression, human rights, news, victims by sally

‘‘Trial by media’ is often touted as a crude alternative to our legal system. But in losing his libel action against The Sun, Johnny Depp’s court battle backfired. It’s a resounding win for press freedom – and for domestic abuse survivors.’

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Each Other, 16th November 2020

Source: eachother.org.uk

Behind the Depp headlines: meaning, evidence and juries – Doughty Street Chambers

Posted November 10th, 2020 in defamation, domestic violence, evidence, juries, media, news by sally

‘On 2nd November 2020, Nicol J handed down his eagerly awaited judgment in Depp v News Group Newspapers and anor [2020] EWHC 2911 (QB). This high-profile case has been widely reported and needs little introduction. In short, Mr Depp failed in his defamation claim concerning an article published by The Sun that alleged that he had committed acts of violence against his then-wife Amber Heard. Nicol J held that the defendants had proved it was “substantially true” that Mr Depp had committed acts of violence against Ms Heard on twelve pleaded occasions.’

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Doughty Street Chambers, 6th November 2020

Source: insights.doughtystreet.co.uk

Mamadou Sakho: Defender accepts ‘substantial’ damages from Wada – BBC News

Posted November 5th, 2020 in damages, defamation, disciplinary procedures, news, sport by tracey

‘Crystal Palace defender Mamadou Sakho has accepted “substantial” damages from the World Anti-Doping Agency over allegations he took banned performance-enhancing drugs.’

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BBC News, 4th November 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Johnny Depp loses libel case against Sun over claims he beat ex-wife Amber Heard – The Guardian

Posted November 2nd, 2020 in compensation, damages, defamation, domestic violence, media, news by tracey

‘The Hollywood actor Johnny Depp has lost his high-stakes libel action in the London courts against the Sun after the newspaper described him as a “wife beater”.’

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The Guardian, 2nd November 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Meghan wins court bid to keep friends’ identities secret – The Guardian

Posted August 6th, 2020 in anonymity, defamation, media, news, privacy, royal family by sally

‘The Duchess of Sussex has won a high court bid to keep secret the identities of five friends who gave anonymous interviews to a US celebrity magazine, in the latest stage of her legal action against the owner of the Mail on Sunday.’

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The Guardian, 5th August 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

TV personalities withdraw libel claim against barrister – Legal Futures

Posted July 30th, 2020 in barristers, defamation, internet, media, news by sally

‘TV personalities Rachel Riley and Tracy-Ann Oberman have withdrawn their defamation claim against a London barrister who retweeted an article about them.’

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Legal Futures, 30th July 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Depp libel trial reveals problems of proof in domestic violence cases – The Guardian

‘Despite being a libel case, Depp v News Group Newspapers Ltd & Another felt more like a criminal trial at the Old Bailey, or a domestic violence hearing in the family courts.’

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The Guardian, 28th July 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Johnny Depp case: What are the libel laws and how do they work? – BBC News

Posted July 28th, 2020 in defamation, defences, media, news by sally

‘After weeks of revelations and accusations in court about his personal relationships, actor Johnny Depp’s mammoth legal action against The Sun for libel is coming to an end – with a judgement expected at the end of the summer.’

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BBC News, 28th July 2020

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Stevie Martin: Bullying, threatening and animus: what remains of the rule against apparent bias following the Supreme Court’s judgment in Serafin? – UK Constitutional Law Association

‘At the heart of the Supreme Court judgment in Serafin v Malkiewicz was the question of whether the Court of Appeal was correct in finding that the defamation proceedings before Justice Jay had been unfair (though the Court’s reasons with respect to the public interest defence under s 4 of the Defamation Act 2013 are also profoundly significant).’

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UK Constitutional Law Association, 22nd July 2020

Source: ukconstitutionallaw.org

Defamation Trumps Data Protection? Steele Yourselves! – Panopticon

Posted July 21st, 2020 in chambers articles, data protection, defamation, news by sally

‘It is a common trope of media lawyers that defamation claims have been on the wane since the Defamation Act 2013, and that data protection law might be the way to fill the gap. (We at Panopticon scorn such arriviste tendencies.) And in Warby J, there is a willing champion of alignment of legal principles between defamation and data protection. He particularly emphasised the read-across in the context of complaints of inaccurate data processing in NT1 v Google LLC [2018] EWHC 799 (QB) (see here) and he has done so again in his very interesting judgment in Aven v Orbis Business Intelligence Ltd [2020] EWHC 1812 (QB).’

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Panopticon, 20th July 2020

Source: panopticonblog.com

Right of audience denied: McKenzie Friend not allowed to speak for litigant who was ‘well able to speak on her own behalf’ – Transparency Project

‘The recent case of Ameyaw v McGoldrick [2020] EWHC 1741 (QB) offers a cautionary tale about McKenzie Friends and what they can and can’t do for you in court. In this case the judge, Mrs Justice Steyn, refused to allow the MF to make oral submissions on behalf of the claimant, saying the claimant was a well-educated intelligent woman who had extensive experience of litigation, and was perfectly capable of speaking for herself.’

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Transparency Project, 5th July 2020

Source: www.transparencyproject.org.uk

Amber Heard can be in court for Johnny Depp’s evidence, high court rules – The Guardian

‘Johnny Depp has failed to stop his ex-wife Amber Heard from watching him give evidence in a libel case over allegations of domestic abuse.’

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The Guardian, 4th July 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

UK judge rules against Johnny Depp over ‘drugs texts’ in libel case – The Guardian

Posted June 30th, 2020 in defamation, disclosure, domestic violence, drug abuse, evidence, news by sally

‘Johnny Depp has breached an order in a libel case by failing to disclose texts that apparently show him trying to obtain drugs, the high court has ruled.’

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The Guardian, 29th June 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Rebekah Vardy sues Coleen Rooney over ‘Wagatha Christie’ claims – The Guardian

Posted June 24th, 2020 in defamation, internet, media, news by sally

‘Rebekah Vardy has launched defamation proceedings against Coleen Rooney at the high court in London, in what could be an extraordinary legal case detailing the feud between the two women and their relationships with the British tabloid media.’

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The Guardian, 23rd June 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Court of Appeal deals blow to libel tourists – Law Society’s Gazette

‘England and Wales’ courts may be less open to international libel litigation following a Court of Appeal ruling which interprets legislation against ’libel tourism’. In Craig Wright v Roger Ver, the court upheld a decision by the High Court that England and Wales was not the appropriate place to hear a defamation action against claims published on social media by a US-born citizen of St Kitts & Nevis now resident in Japan.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 2nd June 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

No well-tuned cymbal: fairness in judges – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted June 5th, 2020 in appeals, chambers articles, defamation, judges, media, news, retrials, Supreme Court by sally

‘This is, to say the least, a rather unfortunate saga. The Claimant, Mr Serafin, brought a defamation claim against a Polish newspaper run by the Defendants. An article had alleged various things including that he was financially untrustworthy and was dishonest in his dealings with women. At trial before Jay J, he represented himself. He was comprehensively disbelieved by the judge. His claim was dismissed, in most cases because the judge found that the article was accurate, but in some instances because the defendants had a public interest defence under s. 4 Defamation Act 2013.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 4th June 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com