The defendant had acquired illegal tapes of telephone conversations which it said implicated the plaintiff. He sought to restrain publication of the material pending forthcoming discliplinary charges at the Jockey Club.
Held: The court had to find a balance of justice. The court spoke of the media and the public interest.
Sir John Donaldson MR said: ‘The media, to use a term which comprises not only the newspapers, but also television and radio, are an essential foundation of any democracy. In exposing crime, anti-social behaviour and hypocrisy, and in campaigning for reform and propagating the views of minorities, they perform an invaluable function. However, they are peculiarly vulnerable to the error of confusing the public interest with their own interest. Usually these interests march hand in hand, but not always. In the instant case, pending a trial, it is impossible to see what public interest would be served by publishing the contents of the tape which would not equally be served by giving them to the police or to the Jockey Club. Any wider publication could only serve the interests of the Daily Mirror.’
The public interest may better be served by passing information to the police than publishing it. If it turns out that the suspicions are without foundation, the confidence can then still be protected.
Judges:
Sir John Donaldson MR
Citations:
[1984] 1 WLR 892
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Lion Laboratories Ltd v Evans CA 1985
Lion Laboratories manufactured and marketed the Lion Intoximeter which was used by the police for measuring blood alcohol levels of motorists. Two ex-employees approached the Press with four documents taken from Lion. The documents indicated that . .
Cited – Hyde Park Residence Ltd v Yelland, News Group Newspapers Ltd, News International Ltd, Murrell CA 10-Feb-2000
The court considered a dispute about ownership and confidence in and copyright of of video tapes taken by Princess Diana before her death.
Held: The courts have an inherent discretion to refuse to enforce of copyright. When assessing whether . .
Cited – Partenaire Ltd v Department of Finance and Personnel QBNI 23-Nov-2007
Application to extend an interim injunction. . .
Cited – Henry Brothers (Magherafelt) Ltd and others v Department of Education for Northern Ireland QBNI 21-Dec-2007
. .
Cited – Derry City Council v Information Commissioner IT 11-Nov-2006
. .
Cited – Derry City Council v Information Commissioner IT 11-Dec-2006
. .
Cited – Cream Holdings Limited and others v Banerjee and The Liverpool Daily Post and Echo Limited CA 13-Feb-2003
The defendants considered publication of alleged financial irregularities by the claimant, who sought to restrain publication. The defendants argued that under the Act, prior restraint should not be used unless a later court would be likely to . .
Cited – Mosley v News Group Newspapers Ltd QBD 24-Jul-2008
The defendant published a film showing the claimant involved in sex acts with prostitutes. It characterised them as ‘Nazi’ style. He was the son of a fascist leader, and a chairman of an international sporting body. He denied any nazi element, and . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Intellectual Property, Media
Updated: 21 July 2022; Ref: scu.223826