Robinson v Quinlivan

In Robinson v Quinlivan, the plaintiff, Lee Kerryn Robinson, brought a defamation action against the defendants, Lynette Patricia Quinlivan, The West Australian Newspapers Limited, and Sean Cowan. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants published defamatory statements about him in an article in The West Australian. The defendants applied to strike out certain parts of the plaintiff's amended statement of claim, arguing that the defamatory imputations were not capable of being conveyed by the words complained of and that the plaintiff's claim for exemplary damages was not supported by the facts pleaded. The court found that the imputation that the plaintiff had been dishonest in giving his evidence at trial was not capable of being conveyed by the words complained of. The court also held that the plaintiff's claim for exemplary damages was not supported by the facts pleaded, as the defendants' conduct did not amount to a contumelious disregard of the plaintiff's rights. Consequently, the court struck out the relevant parts of the plaintiff's statement of claim, with leave to the plaintiff to replead. The court will hear the parties on the issue of costs.