O'Hagan v Nationwide News Pty Ltd

The parties to this appeal were O'Hagan, the plaintiff, and Nationwide News Pty Ltd, the defendant. The dispute concerned a defamation claim brought by O'Hagan against Nationwide News. The appeal was heard by the Court of Appeal of New South Wales, comprising Meagher and Stein JJA and Brownie AJA.

The central legal issue before the Court of Appeal was the admissibility of evidence tendered by the defendant in mitigation of damages. Specifically, the court had to determine whether the evidence related to a "relevant sector" of the plaintiff's reputation, as required for such a plea.

The Court of Appeal upheld the trial judge's decision regarding the admissibility of the evidence. The reasoning focused on the established principles of defamation law concerning the mitigation of damages, which permits a defendant to lead evidence that the plaintiff's reputation in a particular area was already poor, thereby reducing the extent to which the defamatory publication caused further damage. The court found that the evidence in question did not pertain to a relevant sector of the plaintiff's reputation, and therefore, it was correctly excluded.

The appeal was dismissed with costs, and a cross-appeal was also dismissed with costs.