It is clear from the recent case law that the courts must be vigilant when anonymity orders are sought by either party and especially vigilant when both parties agree on anonymity. The Court will usually require evidence to support an application for anonymity and will need to carry out a careful balancing between the rights of the parties and the right of the public to open justice. It is likely that, in the future, such orders will be much more difficult to obtain. On the basis of these cases it is now possible to suggest some principles which apply when a court is considering whether or not to make an “anonymity order”. Continue reading
The International Forum for Responsible Media Blog
Month: November 2010 (Page 2 of 5)
On 4 November 2010 I presented a paper to the “Re-framing Libel” forum on the question of costs. This was posted on this blog. On 19 November 2010, Keith Mathieson responded to my paper with what he described as “another perspective”. His response illustrates the problems that arise in debating the issues in this area and I would like to reply to some of the points he makes. Continue reading
In this regular feature we draw attention to the last week’s law and media news and next week’s upcoming events. If readers have any news or events which they would like to draw attention to please add them by way of comments on this post. Continue reading
Obscene. Once I had caught my breath, and collected my composure, this was my immediate reaction to learning that an Irish High Court Jury had awarded €10 million in libel damages, made up of €9 million in compensatory damages and €1 million in aggravated damages.
The Inforrm Table of Recent Cases is designed to be a useful resource to those who want to keep up to date with the latest media and freedom of expression cases. We try to cover all the cases in England and Wales with the most relevant ones from Strasbourg and from other jurisdictions where decisions have some influence on the approach of the domestic courts. In addition to having the links to the cases – usually from the invaluable Bailii Legal Information site – we also have links to our Case Comments and other relevant blog posts from Inforrm. Continue reading
There has been a great deal of publicity about the need to reform the law of defamation. This includes:
- Index on Censorship and English Pen Report on Libel Reform, “Free Speech is Not for Sale”. The publication of this Report was part of a wider campaign for reform
- Select Committee for the Department of Culture Media & Sport Report on “Press Standards, Privacy and Libel”. This followed a lengthy inquiry, taking evidence from claimants (the McCanns, Max Mosley), defendants (newspapers and other publishers) and lawyers. It was published on 24 February 2010: Continue reading
My first response to Razi Mireskandari’s paper on reframing the costs of libel was to reflect that some useful reframing might be achieved if Razi were to reduce his own charging rate from the £600 an hour (plus VAT) he is seeking to recover from two of my newspaper clients he is currently acting against. That scenario being somewhat unlikely, it may be more useful if I address some of his observations on costs as well as his suggestions for reform. Continue reading
This is a Media Law Update covering the last week prepared by the Legal Information Team at Matrix Chambers, which they have kindly agreed to make available to readers of Inforrm.
Latest Cases
Ntuli v Donald [2010] EWCA Civ 1276. CA (Civ Div) – 12 Nov 2010. The appellant appealed against an interim injunction restraining her from publishing certain information about her former relationship with the respondent and also from publishing the existence of the injunction. The appellant argued that the judge had erred in his analysis of the competing factors in the balance between the respondent’s right to privacy and her right to free expression. Continue reading
On 16 November 2010 the Court of Appeal handed down judgment on an appeal and cross-appeal concerning an interim privacy injunction granted at first instance by Mr Justice Eady in March 2010 and continued until trial or further order on 26 April 2010, when his judgment was handed down. The judgment of Mr Justice Eady included details of the private information in issue and was a private judgment. Continue reading
In a judgment handed down yesterday in the Chancery Division, the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire was ordered to provide information identifying the “News of the World” journalists who instructed him to hack into voice mail messages. In Phillips v News Group Newspapers ([2010] EWHC 2952 (Ch)) Mr Justice Mann ordered Mr Mulcaire to provide information relevant to the claim being brought by Nicola Phillips, a former employee of Max Clifford’s company, against the News of World arising out of alleged phone hacking. Continue reading
Recent Judgments
© 2026 Inforrm's Blog
Theme by Anders Norén — Up ↑