The Times newspaper published a report of the criminal trial in Switzerland of a British subject. When sued in defamation they sought to rely upon the defence of fair reporting of judicial proceedings.
Held: A blanket protection for reporting of foreign judicial proceedings was rejected, but in this case the defence did succeed. A plea of a fair and accurate report of foreign judicial proceedings was not demurrable.
References: [1960] 2 QB 535
Judges: Pearson J
Jurisdiction: England and Wales
This case cites:
- Cited – Cox v Feeney 1863
In an action for libel, consisting of a publication in a newspaper of a report of an inspector of charities under the Charitable Trusts Act, containing a letter, written some years before, reflecting on the plaintiff in hs management of a college: . .
((1863) 4 F and F 13, [1863] EngR 18, , (1863) 4 F and F 13, (1863) 176 ER 445) - Cited – Allbutt v General Council of Medical Education and Registration CA 1889
The defendant had published a book with minutes of a meeting of the council recording that the plaintiff’s name had been removed from the medical register for infamous professional conduct. This followed an inquiry at which the plaintiff had been . .
((1889) 23 QBD 400) - Cited – Perera v Peiris PC 1949
Qualified privilege claim upheld
(Ceylon) The ‘Ceylon Daily News’ had published extracts from a report of the Bribery Commission which was critical of Dr. Perera’s lack of frankness in his evidence. The Judicial Committee upheld a claim to qualified privilege. In the light of the . .
([1949] AC 1)
This case is cited by:
- Cited – Reynolds v Times Newspapers Ltd and others HL 28-Oct-1999
Fair Coment on Political Activities
The defendant newspaper had published articles wrongly accusing the claimant, the former Prime Minister of Ireland of duplicity. The paper now appealed, saying that it should have had available to it a defence of qualified privilege because of the . .
(Times 29-Oct-99, Gazette 25-Nov-99, Gazette 17-Nov-99, , , [2001] 2 AC 127, [1999] UKHL 45, [1999] 4 All ER 609, [1999] 3 WLR 1010, [2000] EMLR 1, [2000] HRLR 134, 7 BHRC 289) - Cited – Blackshaw v Lord CA 1984
Claim to privilege must be precisely focused
The Daily Telegraph carried an article headed ‘Incompetence at ministry cost pounds 52 million’ recording that a number of senior civil servants had been reprimanded after investigation by the Public Accounts Committee. The plaintiff had been in . .
([1984] 1 QB 42, [1983] 2 All ER 311, [1983] 3 WLR 283) - Cited – Loutchansky v Times Newspapers Limited (No 2) CA 12-Mar-2001
The defendants appealed against a refusal to allow them to amend their pleadings. They wished to include allegations as to matters which were unknown to the journalist at the time of publication.
Held: It is necessary for the defendants to . .
(, [2001] EWCA Civ 536) - Cited – Jameel v Wall Street Journal Europe Sprl HL 11-Oct-2006
The House was asked as to the capacity of a limited company to sue for damage to its reputation, where it had no trading activity within the jurisdiction, and as to the extent of the Reynolds defence. The defendants/appellants had published an . .
(, [2006] UKHL 44, Times 12-Oct-06, [2006] 3 WLR 642, [2007] AC 359, [2007] Bus LR 291, [2007] EMLR 2, [2007] EMLR 14, [2006] 4 All ER 1279, 21 BHRC 471, [2006] HRLR 41) - Cited – Stern v Piper and Others CA 21-May-1996
The defendant newspaper said that allegations had been made against the plaintiff that he was not paying his debts. In their defence they pleaded justification and the fact that he was being sued for debt.
Held: A defamation was not to be . .
(Gazette 12-Jun-96, Times 30-May-96, [1997] QB 123, , [1996] EWCA Civ 1291, [1996] 3 WLR 715, [1996] EMLR 413, [1996] 3 All ER 385)
These lists may be incomplete.
Last Update: 27 November 2020; Ref: scu.194512
