Mahommed v Channel Seven Sydney Pty Ltd

The appeal in *Mahommed v Channel Seven Sydney Pty Ltd* concerned a defamation claim brought by the appellant against the respondent. The central dispute revolved around whether a jury's finding that only one of fifteen alleged defamatory imputations was conveyed was a determination that no reasonable jury could reach. The matter was heard in the Court of Appeal of New South Wales.

The primary legal issue before the court was the application of s 7A(3) of the *Defamation Act 1974* (NSW). This provision allows an appeal against a jury's verdict in a defamation case if it is contended that the verdict is one that no reasonable jury could have reached. The court was required to assess whether the jury's specific findings, particularly their rejection of fourteen out of fifteen alleged imputations, met this high threshold for appellate intervention.

The Court of Appeal found that the jury's determination that imputations 1(a) to (c), 2(a) to (c), and 3(a) to (c) and 3(f) to (h) were not conveyed was indeed a decision that no reasonable jury could have reached. The judges reasoned that, based on the evidence presented at trial, it was unreasonable for the jury to conclude that these specific imputations were not conveyed to the ordinary reasonable viewer. Consequently, the appeal was allowed, the jury's verdicts for the respondent were set aside, and the appellant's claim in relation to the identified imputations was remitted for redetermination by a jury. The respondent was ordered to pay the appellant's costs of the appeal, and the original costs order made by the trial judge was also set aside.