Bashford v Information Australia (Newsletters) Pty Ltd

The case of *Bashford v Information Australia (Newsletters) Pty Ltd* concerned a defamation claim brought by the appellant, R. A. Bashford Consulting Pty. Limited, against the respondent, Information Australia (Newsletters) Pty Ltd. The dispute arose from an article published in the respondent's newsletter, "Occupational Health & Safety Bulletin," which reported on a Federal Court decision. The appellant alleged that the article conveyed a defamatory imputation that it had been found liable by the Federal Court for publishing a false report concerning ACOHS Pty. Limited, resulting in damages and costs. The matter was heard in the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the respondent could successfully rely on the defences of truth, contextual truth, and qualified privilege under the *Defamation Act* and at common law. Specifically, the court had to determine if the imputations complained of were substantially true, if contextual imputations were substantially true and related to a matter of public interest or qualified privilege, and if the imputation complained of did not further injure the appellant's reputation due to the truth of the contextual imputations. The court also considered whether the occasion of publication was one of qualified privilege, and if so, whether that privilege was defeated by any additional material published.

The court found that the defamatory material was contained within the last seven paragraphs of an article discussing a Federal Court decision regarding a copyright claim. These paragraphs explained the context of the copyright claim, which was made in response to an action brought against the claimant. The court held that these paragraphs, including the three containing the matter complained of, were relevant to the discussion of the copyright claim and therefore relevant to the occasion of publication. Applying the principle that expressions such as "relevant to the occasion" describe what is relevant to the occasion, the court determined that the occasion was one of qualified privilege.

The appeal was dismissed with costs.