Complaint was made about the defamatory contents of a letter written on an occasion of privilege. It was said that the privilege was defeated by malice.
Held: The court could look to the surrounding circumstances to assess whether the language of the letter was so much too violent as to allow an inference of malice and to defeat the privilege. Extravagant language can be evidence of an intention to injure the plaintiff.
Citations:
38 LJEx 138, (1869) LR 4 Exch 232, 20 LT 675, 17 WR 805
Cited by:
Approved – Alfred Nelson Laughton v The Hon And Right Reverend The Lord Bishop of Sodor And Man PC 15-Nov-1872
LaughtonSodor1872
(Isle of Man) The Bishop of Sodor and Man, in a charge to his Clergy in Convocation, commented on a speech made by a Barrister in his character of an Advocate instructed to oppose a Bill before the House of Keys, promoted by the Government, vesting . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Defamation
Updated: 15 May 2022; Ref: scu.549441
