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11.05.22
Depp v Heard: the perils of live-streaming and trial by TikTok
Following on from recent blogs on derogations from the principles of open justice and closed materials, we look today at the other side of that coin: wide-open justice. At the time of writing, the US defamation case of John C. Depp II v Amber Laura Heard (CL-2019-2911) is just past its half-way point in Fairfax,…
Read more23.07.21
Tommy Robinson ordered to pay £100,000 in damages to schoolboy he defamed on Facebook
On 22 July 2021, Mr Justice Nicklin handed down judgment in the Hijazi v Yaxley defamation proceedings (Yaxley-Lennon is popularly known by his pseudonym, Tommy Robinson). The full judgment (Hijazi v Yaxley-Lennon [2021] EWHC 2008 (QB)) can be found here. Early in the litigation Mr Yaxley-Lennon was represented by solicitors and lead Counsel. In the…
Read more29.05.20
Uncle ordered to pay niece £15,000 for sharing private information on Facebook
In JQL v NTP [2020] EWHC 1349 (QB), the Claimant sued the Defendant, her uncle, for publishing a post on Facebook that identified her as having received “treatment for mental health and self-harm”, that was said to be a misuse of her private information. The post was part of a thread between family members, several…
Read more3.09.19
The importance of lawyers’ professionalism and sensitivity on social media
It is a peculiar quirk of the criminal defence industry, that there has always been a sizeable minority of lawyers who have felt the need to sing their every success from the rooftops. Of course, there is nothing inherently wrong with highlighting a law firm’s high-profile successes. It is good marketing and helps prospective clients…
Read more9.04.19
Supreme Court considers social media defamation: context is everything
Some practitioners were surprised that Stocker v Stocker [2019] UKSC 17 reached the country’s highest court. The appeal concerned the meaning (or imputation) of words in a libel action. At first blush this apparently factual dispute might not have seemed to be a matter of any particular public importance, taking into account the Supreme Court’s busy workload and…
Read more22.01.19
Facebook ‘Keyboard warrior’ ordered to pay £55,000 in libel and harassment damages after false accusations of animal cruelty and orchestration of online hate campaign
In Suttle v Walker [2019] EWHC 396 QB Mr Justice Nicklin ordered Samantha Walker to pay care home manager Kim Suttle £55,685.06 in libel and harassment damages after instigating a hate campaign against her based on false allegations that she had abused her dog. Facts The Claimant Ms Suttle was walking one of her dogs…
Read more29.09.18
Leading media lawyer to face SDT over alleged ‘offensive and profane’ comments on social media
Mark Lewis, a solicitor who undertook pioneering work in bringing phone-hacking claims against the News of the World, is being prosecuted by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority (‘SRA’) before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (‘SDT’) in respect of allegations that he posted ‘offensive and profane’ communications on social media. It is alleged by the SRA that on…
Read more17.07.18
Lexis Nexis Interview: UK data protection watchdog intends to impose maximum fine on Facebook
The information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published two reports detailing its investigation into the use of data analytics in political campaigns. The first report includes proposals to fine Facebook £500,000—the maximum allowed—for two alleged breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA 1998), while the other includes a recommendation for the government to introduce a statutory Code of Practice…
Read more11.07.18
Facebook faces record £500,000 fine for Cambridge Analytica data breaches
The Information Commissioner’s Office (‘the ICO’) has published a progress report on its investigation into the “invisible processing” of individuals’ personal data and the “micro-targeting” of political adverts during the EU referendum campaign. The investigation is principally concerned with the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal in which third party developers used apps (for example, a personality test) to…
Read more18.06.18
Court orders Facebook to disclose information behind deletion of deceased person’s Facebook account
In Sabados v Facebook Ireland Ltd (2018; unreported) His Honour Judge Parkes QC (sitting as a Judge of the High Court) ordered Facebook Ireland to disclose information pertaining to a request which it had received (and acted upon) to delete the account of a deceased person. Facebook Ireland Limited was, until recently, responsible for all…
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Articles are intended as an introduction to the topic and do not constitute legal advice.
