Category: Freedom of Expression

Simon Singh, ‘bogus’ claims, and – finally – sense about libel

| 11 Comments
| Defamation, Defamation Act 2009, Freedom of Expression

Simon Singh, via his websiteSimon Singh has become an unlikely poster boy for reform of the UK’s libel laws. On Thursday, in an important judgment on the defence of fair comment, the Court of Appeal made it considerably easier for him to defend a libel case being taken against him by the British Chiropractic Association (BCA). Singh is a science writer whose current concern is with the basis and efficacy of alternative treatments. He is the co-author (with Professor Edzard Ernst) of Trick or Treatment? Alternative Medicine on Trial (Bantam Press, 2008; Amazon). On 19 April 2008, in a piece headlined Beware the spinal trap in the Guardian‘s “Comment and Debate” page, he wrote:

The British Chiropractic Association claims that their members can help treat children with colic, sleeping and feeding problems, frequent ear infections, asthma and prolonged crying, even though there is not a jot of evidence. This organisation is the respectable face of the chiropractic profession and yet it happily promotes bogus treatments.

The BCA sued Singh, alleging that this passage was libellous. Aoife McLysaght presented a compelling critique (via YouTube) to Ignite Dublin #3 about this case. To my mind, this is the first of the many worrying aspects of the case.…

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Referendum should thoroughly revise free speech clause

| 7 Comments
| Blasphemy, Freedom of Expression, Irish Law, Irish Society

Celtic Biblical image, via poetheadPart 5 of the Defamation Act, 2009 (also here), which came into effect on 1 January this year, controversially makes blasphemy a criminal offence. In the view of the Minister for Justice, Dermot Ahern, the Constitution’s reference to blasphemy could not be ignored. It now seems that this reference might be removed. If so, the opportunity should be taken to revise the Constitution’s free speech clause in its entirety.

Stephen O’Brien reported in the Sunday Times last week that the Minister for Justice, Dermot Ahern, intends to propose an Autumn referendum to remove the offence of blasphemy from the Constitution (athiest.ie | Attracta | Dispatches | Guardian | Human Rights in Ireland | Human Rights World | Jurist | Bill Tormey | Volokh | William Quill). This was confirmed on Wednesday by Carol Coulter writing in the Irish Times (ABC | Catholic Lawyers | Iona | Sunday Times).

I have long argued that the protection of freedom of expression in the Irish Constitution is very puny indeed and ought to be replaced at the first opportunity. I argue in today’s Irish Times that a referendum to remove the offence of blasphemy from the Constitution would provide just that opportunity:

Referendum on blasphemy should revise free speech clause

The promised referendum to remove the reference to blasphemy from the Constitution should go further, and entirely revamp the very limited guarantee of freedom of expression … Deleting one objectionable word, rather than thoroughly revising the whole gruesome clause, would be equivalent to repairing a single broken slate on the roof of a house which needs complete refurbishment.

…

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Trouble in the Blog O’Sphere

| 1 Comment
| Cyberlaw, Defamation, Defamation Act 2009, Freedom of Expression, Irish cases, Irish Law, Irish Society

Technorati logo, via TechnoratiIt all began innocently enough: just before Christmas, Sunday Times journalist John Burns wrote a piece lamenting the shortcomings of blogging in Ireland. Leading bloggers naturally begged to differ. A month later, the spat was picked up by Trevor Butterworth writing on Forbes.com, who noted that “it’s hard to think of a free country more suited to blogging than Ireland”. By the same token, it’s at least as hard to think of a country more given to litigation; and the point was illustrated by a story retailed almost en passant in Butterworth’s piece:

As one journalist told me, Ireland’s media is currently abuzz over a “confidential” legal settlement against a blogger, who allegedly had to pay almost $140,000 in damages for a libelous post, seen by few, swiftly purged from the site, and readily apologized for.

This was intriguing. By the end of the week, John Burns in the Sunday Times had the full story:

A blogger has agreed a €100,000 settlement after libelling Niall Ó Donnchú, a senior civil servant, and his girlfriend Laura Barnes. It is the first time in Ireland that defamatory material on a blog has resulted in a pay-out. … In December 1, 2006, a blogger who styles himself as Ardmayle posted a comment about the couple … Following a legal complaint, he took down the blog and in February 2007 he posted an apology which had been supplied by Ó Donnchú’s and Barnes’ lawyer … However, the pair subsequently issued separate proceedings.

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Espionage is a serious business: freedom of speech and restitutionary remedies

| 5 Comments
| Conferences, Lectures, Papers and Workshops, Freedom of Expression, Restitution

Cover of 'Decent Interval' by Frank Snepp, via his siteOver sixty years ago, the Faculty of Laws at University College London established the Current Legal Problems lecture series and accompanying annual volume as a major reference point for a broad range of legal scholarship opinion, theory, methodology, and subject matter, with an emphasis upon contemporary developments of law. The lectures are held at the Faculty of Law, Bentham House, Endsleigh Gardens, London WC1 from 6-7pm; they are open to the public and free of charge. This week‘s current legal issue is:

Spies Like Us? Frank Snepp and George Blake: Freedom of Speech and Restitutionary Remedies

“Espionage is a serious business” sang a moderately famous Irish pop singer of the 1980s. And so it is. It can be even more of a business when former spies seek to publish their memoirs, and things can get very serious indeed if they fail to seek the clearance of their former spymasters in advance. The decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States in Snepp v US 444 US 507 (1980) and of the House of Lords in AG v Blake [2001] 1 AC 268; [2000] UKHL 45 (27 July 2000) make a fascinating pair of cases in which former spies (unsuccessfully) argued that a restitutionary remedy against uncleared publication of their memoirs infringed their speech rights.…

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The defence of responsible journalism must await another case

| 2 Comments
| Defamation, Freedom of Expression

Sir Louis Blom-Cooper QC, via the BBC news websiteAs the Supreme Court of Canada adopts a species of the responsible journalism defence to libel claims, the case that embodied the best opportunity that Irish law has had so far to do the same has come to an end. In Hunter v Duckworth, Ó Caoimh J in the High Court ([2003] IEHC 81 (31 July 2003)) seemed to approve of the defence (at least in the view of Charlton J in a later case), but the Supreme Court ducked the question and returned the case to the High Court. However, the case has now been settled. According to the Irish Times:

English barrister apologises to two Birmingham Six

An English barrister has apologised before the High Court to two members of the wrongly jailed Birmingham Six who had sued him for defamation over a pamphlet written by him which contained material meaning, the men alleged, they were “mass murderers”.

Sir Louis Blom–Cooper QC in an apology read by his counsel Douglas Clarke yesterday, said he “sincerely regrets certain unintended inferences” which have been drawn from the publication of the pamphlet in 1997.

He said “an unqualified apology for any suggestion of the guilt” of Hugh Callaghan and Gerry Hunter was “overdue”.

…

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