The British press has made much of the injunction granted by the Court of Appeal in PJS v News Group Newspapers. This overturned the first instance decision that a story (to be published by The Sun on Sunday) about a well-known entertainer’s spouse engaging in extra-marital sexual activity was a matter of public interest (outweighing the couple’s claim to privacy). Continue reading
The International Forum for Responsible Media Blog
Tag: Paul Wragg (Page 4 of 4)
The decision in Barbulescu v Romania, in the European Court of Human Rights (“ECtHR”), has attracted much press interest. It has been widely reported as granting employers a right to snoop on their employee’s online life. Let us ignore the actual facts for a moment (as most newspapers have done). Continue reading
Imagine, set before us, the judicial toolkit in misuse of private information (MOPI) claims, as if it had physical properties. We would see a fine set of golden scales, with one plate marked ‘privacy’ and the other marked ‘public interest’. Continue reading
Hugh Tomlinson’s excellent post came as a welcome reassurance that the Misuse of Private Information (“MOPI”) tort should survive the proposed repeal of the Human Rights Act 1998 (“HRA”). As he argues, MOPI is not dependent on its origins. Yet MOPI is a child, with years of maturity still required, and one born of two parents (Articles 8 and 10 ECHR) with particular values, specifically that both are of equal status. Once these parents are executed (for crimes they did not commit), MOPI can expect to be adopted by a very different set of parents, who are most unlikely to hold the same values. Continue reading
It is now over ten years since the landmark decision in Campbell v MGN Ltd ([2004] 2 AC 457) established the misuse of private information (“MOPI”) tort (any lingering doubt that it might not be a tort has been eradicated by the Court of Appeal decision in Vidal-Hall v Google Inc [2015] EWCA Civ 311). Continue reading
The Australian Law Reform Commission has recommended the creation of a commonwealth statute to protect against serious invasions of privacy. The proposed tort bears close comparison to the UK’s misuse of private information action, developed from Campbell v MGN ([2004] AC 457). The full report is available here [pdf]. Continue reading
If you decide to keep a dangerous dog, well-known for its generally intemperate and often vicious nature, and ignore, or worse, deny the constant and sensible advice you are given pointing out the danger you can hardly expect much sympathy when that dog bites you. And so it is that David Cameron’s pitiful cries of foul play will fall on deaf ears. Continue reading
A series of policy briefs assessing the impact of Lord Justice Leveson’s recommendations for reform of the press and the government’s plans for a Royal Charter are now available to download on the Foundation for Law, Justice and Society Website. Continue reading
In his report, Lord Justice Leveson expressed concern at the ‘real harm caused to real people’ resulting from the ‘cultural indifference to individual privacy and dignity’ that he observes in problematic press behaviour. The tragic case of Lucy Meadows is surely the paradigm example of what he had in mind. Continue reading
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