NATIONWIDE NEWS PTY. LIMITED v. CARMICHAEL & OTHERS [2005] NSWCA 56

NATIONWIDE NEWS PTY. LIMITED v. CARMICHAEL & OTHERS [2005] NSWCA 56

Given the prominence of the second headline, its conjunction with the first headline, the juxtaposition of the opponents' group photograph with the District Court defendant's photograph, and the limited basis of the article's reporting, the trial judge did not err in holding that the article was capable of carrying the pleaded imputations and that it was for the jury to decide whether the imputations were in fact conveyed.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
14 February 2005
Procedural Posture
Application for Leave to Appeal in Defamation Proceedings / Leave to Appeal Against Nicholas J's Order That the Newspaper Article Was Capable of Carrying the Pleaded Imputations
Outcome
Leave refused with costs.
Legal Topics
['capacity to Convey Defamatory Imputation' 'reporting of Court Proceedings' 'ordinary Reasonable Reader' 'headlines and Article Layout' 'strike Out of Imputations']
['defamation'] ['capacity to Convey Defamatory Imputation' 'reporting of Court Proceedings' 'ordinary Reasonable Reader' 'headlines and Article Layout' 'strike Out of Imputations']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Application for Leave to Appeal in Defamation Proceedings / Leave to Appeal Against Nicholas J's Order That the Newspaper Article Was Capable of Carrying the Pleaded Imputations

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether the Daily Telegraph article was capable of conveying imputations that the opponents colluded with neighbours in a poisoning claim scam to get rich.' 'Whether the article, read as a whole, was merely a neutral report of court proceedings or was capable of conveying an imputation of guilt.' 'Whether the prominence, wording and layout of the headlines and photographs affected the defamatory meaning conveyed.']

Ratio Decidendi

Given the prominence of the second headline, its conjunction with the first headline, the juxtaposition of the opponents' group photograph with the District Court defendant's photograph, and the limited basis of the article's reporting, the trial judge did not err in holding that the article was capable of carrying the pleaded imputations and that it was for the jury to decide whether the imputations were in fact conveyed.

Court Disposition

Leave refused with costs.

Orders

  • ['The application is refused with costs.']