All posts
10.01.25
Could Liz Truss sue Keir Starmer for accusing her of crashing the economy?
Former Prime Minister Liz Truss is a keen supporter of the Musk brand of free speech, but not apparently when it comes to criticism of herself. Yesterday it was reported that Ms Truss had instructed lawyers to send a legal ‘cease and desist letter’ demanding that the current Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refrain from…
Read more7.01.25
Why Tommy Robinson is in prison
As Nigel Farage pointed out last week, far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known to the public as Tommy Robinson, has been in prison several times for several different reasons. He has a string of convictions for fraud, public order and drug offences, as well as contempt of court. Whilst Elon Musk might have millions believe…
Read more24.12.24
The dangers of reporting on ongoing legal proceedings
Journalists typically get a pretty robust legal education when it comes to reporting on criminal investigations, arrests, and ongoing trials. Those working for newspapers will regularly work with clearance lawyers to properly understand the rules, and avoid finding themselves in contempt of court. It would appear to be harder for broadcast journalists, who sometimes have…
Read more17.12.24
What it means to be called a ‘bike nonce’ and other similar meaning decisions
Since the dawn of defamation claims, it has been a requirement to determine the meaning of the words complained of (i.e. the sting of the libel). Once the preserve of the jury at trial, this is now determined by a judge and, in most cases, at a trial of preliminary issues (normally also deciding whether…
Read more16.12.24
Mail on Sunday apologises and pays substantial damages as long-running ‘statins claim’ ends
The Mail on Sunday and its health editor Barney Calman have apologised and paid damages to academic Zoe Harcombe PhD and medical doctor Malcolm Kendrick for the publication of articles in 2019 that accused them of knowingly making false statements about cholesterol-lowering drugs statins, thereby causing a large number of people not to take statins…
Read more14.12.24
Defamation Act 2013: A summary and overview 10 years on
On 1 January 2014 the Defamation Act 2013 (‘the Act’) came into force. At the time, we published an article considering the individual provisions of the Act, and speculating about how the law of defamation had been changed. We first reviewed the practical impact of the Act in 2020, and now do so again, a decade on from the…
Read more4.12.24
Will Google forget my conviction? The right to be forgotten and criminal convictions
For potential employers, colleagues, clients or new acquaintances, an online search is generally the starting point for finding information about you. As a result, the presence of negative press or social media coverage in the search results for your name can have serious consequences. For example, a number of people who have come to us…
Read more21.08.24
Brett Wilson LLP recognised by Legal 500 as a leading firm for client satisfaction
Brett Wilson LLP has been recognised by the prestigious Legal 500 directory as a leading firm for client satisfaction. The Legal 500 claims to hold more information on the client market than any other organisation in the legal sector. The recognition follows six years of in-depth client research. Brett Wilson LLP is one of only…
Read more17.06.24
Press release: GB News apologises to Dale Vince and agrees to pay libel damages
GB News has apologised to Dale Vince, the green energy industrialist, environmental campaigner and co-owner of Forest Green Rovers, for defaming him in a tweet/video published on X on 14 March 2024. The tweet complained of read, “You had a major Labour Party donor who called Hamas “freedom fighters”! No one has asked Labour if…
Read more9.05.24
Press release: The Telegraph pays tech entrepreneur Lu Heng substantial libel damages
The Telegraph has agreed to pay substantial damages to business and tech entrepreneur Lu Heng after accusing him in an article published on its website of disrupting organisations that provide IP addresses to different continents. In a statement read in the High Court today before Mrs Justice Steyn, Mr Lu’s solicitor, Tom Double, explained that the…
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Articles are intended as an introduction to the topic and do not constitute legal advice.
