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7.05.13
McAlpine v Bercow to be listed for preliminary hearing on meaning of tweet
In McAlpine v Bercow [2013] EWHC 981 (QB) Mr Justice Tugendhat granted an application by the Claimant Lord McAlpine for a preliminary hearing to be held to determine the meaning of the Defendant sally Bercow’s tweet of 4 December 2012 – ‘Why is Lord McAlpine trending? *Innocent face*’. The tweet was sent two days after the BBC’s Newsnight broadcast a…
Read more24.04.13
Prisoners' entitlement to damages in defamation claim should be reduced
Two serving prisoners have brought a libel action against the police for the contents of a press release which they allege have defamed them. In RH and AA* v The Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis [2013] EWHC 848 (QB), the High Court was asked to consider the actual meaning of the words complained…
Read more23.04.13
Civil Justice Council publishes report on Defamation Costs
On 18 April 2013, the Civil Justice Council (CJC) Working Group published its report with recommendations on costs protection in defamation and privacy claims. The Government had delayed the implementation of reform in these types of cases after the publication of the Leveson Report. In other civil cases, reforms were brought into effect from 1…
Read more15.04.13
Defamation actions do not survive the death of a party
The High Court was asked to consider the meaning of CPR 40.7(1) in determining whether a reserved judgment in an application during defamation proceedings could be given after the death of the claimant. In Harvey smith v Bobby DHA [2013] EWHC 838 (QB) the claimant, Mr smith, brought a claim in defamation against the defendant. …
Read more12.04.13
CFA success Fees and After the Event Insurance premiums cease to be recoverable
save in libel/privacy, insolvency and mesothelioma cases, Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) success fees and After The Event (ATE) insurance premiums have ceased to be recoverable from the losing party in civil litigation. The change will not affect CFAs and ATE insurance policies enetered into prior to 1 April 2013. CFAs allow solicitors and their clients to share the risk of the litigation. The solicitor only charges the…
Read more24.03.13
Court of Appeal stresses need for specific justification where there is interference with Article 8 rights
In R (on the application of Catt) and (1) Association of Chief Police Officers (2) Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis; R (on the application of T) and Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis [2013] EWCA Civ 192, the Court of Appeal considered two cases concerning the retention of personal data by the police. The…
Read more22.03.13
supreme Court considers 'prevention/detection of crime' defence in harassment cases
The supreme Court in Hayes v Willoughby, have considered the scope of the defence under s.1(3)(a) of the Protection of Harassment Act 1997. Under that provision, a person cannot be found liable for a course of conduct that amounts to harassment if their conduct was pursued for the purpose of preventing or detecting crime. The…
Read more15.03.13
Iain Wilson listed in Thomson Reuters super Lawyers
Brett Wilson LLP partner Iain Wilson has been listed as a ‘Rising star’ in the inaugural London edition of the Thomson Reuters super Lawyers. The London directory was launched on 14 March 2013 to compliment the prestigious Us directory which is now in its 22nd year. The number of lawyers listed as Rising stars (a category for lawyers aged 40…
Read more4.03.13
Right to respect for family and private life trumps freedom of expression in ˜harassment by protest case
In The Wife and Children of Omar Othman v English National Resistance & Others the High Court ruled that an injunction preventing protest within the vicinity of a family home and the release of personal information relating to the family did not breach the freedom of expression enshrined in Article 10 of the European Convention…
Read more25.02.13
Fears over future of Defamation Bill
Lord Lester has warned that amendments proposed to the Defamation Bill by Lord Puttnam are placing the future of the Bill in jeopardy. It was Lord Lester’s Private Member’s Bill that originally put defamation on the parliamentary agenda and led to the government-sponsored bill. The Bill seeks to modernise and codify the law of libel….
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Articles are intended as an introduction to the topic and do not constitute legal advice.
