John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd v Obeid

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Case Copied 76 min read

Reported Decision:

 64 NSWLR 485

Court of Appeal


CITATION:

John Fairfax Publications Pty Limited v Obeid [2005] NSWCA 60
HEARING DATE(S):

14 May 2004
 
JUDGMENT DATE: 


14 March 2005

JUDGMENT OF:

Sheller JA at 1; McColl JA at 2; McClellan AJA at 130
DECISION:

(1) Grant the appellant leave to appeal subject to filing the Amended Notice of Appeal within 14 days. (2) Dismiss the appeal. (3) Appellant to pay the respondent's costs.
CATCHWORDS:

DEFAMATION - discharge of jury - whether counsel's address entitled the trial judge to discharge the jury - where counsel addressed the jury that the ordinary reasonable reader would read the matter complained of with the presumption of innocence in mind - Republication of defamatory hearsay - adoption - relevance of publisher's intention - whether error of discretion - appeal dismissed. (D)
LEGISLATION CITED:

Defamation Act 1974 (NSW)
CASES CITED:

Ainsworth Nominees Pty Limited v Hanrahan [1982] 2 NSWLR 823
Astaire v Campling [1966] 1 WLR 34
Australian Broadcasting Corporation v Comalco Ltd (1986) 12 FCR 510
Bass v TCN Channel Nine [2003] NSWCA 118; (2003) 60 NSWLR 251
Bass v McDonald & TCN Channel Nine [2001] NSWSC 988
Bik v Mirror Newspapers Limited [1979] 2 NSWLR 679
Buck v Jones [2002] NSWCA 8
Capital & Counties Bank Ltd v George Henty & Sons (1882) 7 App Cas 741
Dow v Jones & Company Inc v Gutnick [2002] HCA 56; 210 CLR 575
Emmens v Pottle (1885) 16 QBD 354
Gillespie v Nationwide News Pty Limited [2000] NSWSC 553
Gonzales v Claridades [2003] NSWSC 508; (2003) 58 NSWLR 188
Hassen v Post Newspapers Pty Ltd (1965) 3 SA 562
Hepburn v TCN Channel Nine Pty Ltd [1983] 2 NSWLR 664
Harrison v Mirror Newspapers Ltd [1981] 1 NSWLR 620
John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd Rivkin [2003] HCA 50; (2003) 77 ALJR 1657
Lang v Australian Consolidated Press Ltd [1970] 2 NSWR 408
Lee v Wilson & Mackinnon [1934] HCA 60; (1934) 51 CLR 276
Lewis v Daily Telegraph [1963] QB 340
Lewis v Daily Telegraph Ltd [1964] AC 234
Love v Mirror Newspapers Ltd [1980] 2 NSWLR 112
Mirror Newspapers Limited v Harrison [1982] HCA 50; (1982) 149 CLR 293
Morgan v John Fairfax & Sons Limited (1988) 13 NSWLR 208
Morgan v Odhams Press Ltd [1971] 1 WLR 1239
Nationwide News Pty Limited v Heggie [2001] NSWCA 257
Obeid v John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd [2003] NSWSC 967
"Truth" (NZ) Limited v Holloway [1960] 1 WLR 997
Rochfort v John Fairfax & Sons Ltd [1972] 1 NSWLR 16
Rigby v John Fairfax Group Pty Ltd (New South Wales Court of Appeal, unreported, 1 February 1996)
Ronald v Harper [1910] HCA 43; (1910) 11 CLR 63
Ross McConnel Kitchen & Co Pty Ltd v John Fairfax & Sons Ltd [1980] 2 NSWLR 845
Wake v John Fairfax & Sons Ltd [1973] NSWLR 43
Webb v Bloch (1928) 41 CLR 331
Webbie v Nationwide News Pty Ltd (1968) 12…

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Details
Case
[2005] NSWCA 60
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a defamation judgment. The dispute concerned the publication of defamatory material, and the appeal focused on whether the trial judge had erred in discharging the jury during the initial trial.

The primary legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether counsel's address to the jury, which suggested the ordinary reasonable reader would consider the defamatory matter with a presumption of innocence, constituted grounds for discharging the jury. Additionally, the court considered whether the republication of defamatory hearsay was adopted by the publisher and the relevance of the publisher's intention in this context, as well as whether any decision made by the trial judge constituted an error of discretion.

The Court of Appeal reasoned that counsel's submission regarding the presumption of innocence, while potentially controversial, did not necessarily vitiate the jury's ability to consider the matter impartially. The court found that the trial judge's decision to discharge the jury was not an error of discretion, as the circumstances did not warrant such a drastic step. The principles of defamation law concerning republication and the publisher's intention were applied, with the court concluding that the appeal lacked merit.

The Court of Appeal granted the appellant leave to appeal, conditional on the filing of an Amended Notice of Appeal within 14 days. Ultimately, the appeal was dismissed, and John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd was ordered to pay the respondent's costs.

Orders

Orders of the court

(1) Grant the appellant leave to appeal subject to filing the Amended Notice of Appeal within 14 days. (2) Dismiss the appeal. (3) Appellant to pay the respondent's costs.

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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