Tabbaa v TCN Channel Nine Pty Ltd (No 3) [2015] NSWSC 1114

Tabbaa v TCN Channel Nine Pty Ltd (No 3) [2015] NSWSC 1114

Imputations must be pleaded with adequate specificity to delineate the issues for trial. The proposed imputations 'that the plaintiff is an extremely evil person' and 'that the plaintiff forced his daughter to endure the most dreadful breaches of human rights' failed to meet the requirement of specificity and were liable to be struck out. However, the imputation 'that the plaintiff intends to track down his daughter and kill her' could be inferred from the material and should be determined by the jury.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
10 August 2015
Procedural Posture
Defamation / Interlocutory Rulings on Pleadings/imputations
Outcome
Some proposed imputations struck out for lack of specificity; one imputation allowed to stand for jury determination.
Legal Topics
['pleadings' 'imputations' 'specificity Requirements']
['defamation'] ['pleadings' 'imputations' 'specificity Requirements']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Defamation / Interlocutory Rulings on Pleadings/imputations

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether proposed imputations meet requirements of specificity in defamation pleadings' 'Permissibility of drawing imputations from the words of the matter complained of']

Ratio Decidendi

Imputations must be pleaded with adequate specificity to delineate the issues for trial. The proposed imputations 'that the plaintiff is an extremely evil person' and 'that the plaintiff forced his daughter to endure the most dreadful breaches of human rights' failed to meet the requirement of specificity and were liable to be struck out. However, the imputation 'that the plaintiff intends to track down his daughter and kill her' could be inferred from the material and should be determined by the jury.

Court Disposition

Some proposed imputations struck out for lack of specificity; one imputation allowed to stand for jury determination.

Orders

  • ["Imputation 'that the plaintiff is an extremely evil person' struck out." "Imputation 'that the plaintiff forced his daughter to endure the most dreadful breaches of human rights' struck out." 'Plaintiff not given leave to re-plead the struck-out imputations.' "Imputation 'that the plaintiff intends to track down...