During the Summer, I wrote about the decision of the UK’s Court of Appeal in Associated Newspapers Ltd v Keith Burstein [2007] EWCA Civ 600 (22 June 2007), to the effect that an opera critic’s review of the defedant’s opera Manifest Destiny was covered by the defence of fair comment. The defendant sought to appeal to the House of Lords. Now, via MediaPal@LSE (see also Media Law Prof Blog) I learn that, at the end of last month, the House of Lords has decided not to hear the appeal on the usual ground the case “does not raise an arguable point of law of general public importance which ought to be considered by the House”. According to Ben Dowell in The Guardian, however, the undaunted composer intends to bring the case to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). I wrote at the time that the Court of Appeal decision was plainly good common sense, and very welcome for it; I am glad that the House of Lords has declined to hear the appeal; and I fully expect the European Court of Human Rights to dismiss the case as manifestly ill-founded (within the meaning of Article 35(3) of the European Convention on Human Rights (pdf)).…

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At the end of June, communications consultant Monica Leech lost a high-profile libel action against the Irish Independent; in essence, the jury found that the article in question by Frank Kahn did not bear the defamatory meanings which she had sought to attribute to it. Given the profile of the case, there was much media (Breaking News | Irish Independent | Irish Times (sub req’d) | Irish Times (sub req’d) | RTÉ) and online (Blurred Keys | JC Skinner | Of Laws and Men | Our Man in Gdansk) reaction.

However, there is more to the case than the newsworthiness of a high profile libel loss. In fact, Mr Justice Charleton (pictured above left) made an important ruling during the course of the trial, which as Mary Carolan pointed out in the Irish Times the following Saturday gives more leeway to media on libel defence (sub req’d). The Best of Both Worlds described it as a slight gain for free speech. I think it is rather more than that. I think that it is an important affirmation of the acceptance into Irish law of a defence (which the judge called a “public interest” defence) which has been developing and strengthening elsewhere in the common law world.…

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