McKeown v Attheraces Ltd [2011] EWHC 3232 (QB) (07 December 2011)

McKeown v Attheraces Ltd [2011] EWHC 3232 (QB) (07 December 2011)

Permission is granted to the Defendant to re-amend its defence to plead Reynolds privilege and general bad reputation. The trial will be by judge alone, not by jury, due to the need for prolonged examination of documents and the presumption in favour of judge-alone trial under s.69(3) of the Senior Courts Act 1981. There will be no preliminary issue on privilege defences, as this would likely cause duplication and not achieve significant savings in time or costs.

Citation
[2011] EWHC 3232 (QB)
Parties
Claimant: Dean McKeown; Defendant: Attheraces Limited
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
07 December 2011
Procedural Posture
Libel Action / Pre Trial Interlocutory Applications
Outcome
Defendant's applications for permission to re-amend the defence and for trial by judge alone are granted; application for preliminary issue is refused.
Legal Topics
Libel, Justification, Fair Comment, Qualified Privilege, Reynolds Privilege, Mode of Trial, Preliminary Issues
Defamation Media Law Civil Procedure Libel Justification Fair Comment Qualified Privilege Reynolds Privilege +2 more

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Parties

Dean McKeown

Claimant

Attheraces Limited

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Libel Action / Pre Trial Interlocutory Applications

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether permission should be granted to the Defendant to re-amend its defence to plead Reynolds privilege and general bad reputation
  2. 2 Whether the trial should be by judge alone or by judge and jury
  3. 3 Whether there should be a preliminary issue to dispose of all privilege defences in advance of trial

Ratio Decidendi

Permission is granted to the Defendant to re-amend its defence to plead Reynolds privilege and general bad reputation. The trial will be by judge alone, not by jury, due to the need for prolonged examination of documents and the presumption in favour of judge-alone trial under s.69(3) of the Senior Courts Act 1981. There will be no preliminary issue on privilege defences, as this would likely cause duplication and not achieve significant savings in time or costs.

Court Disposition

Defendant's applications for permission to re-amend the defence and for trial by judge alone are granted; application for preliminary issue is refused.

Orders

  • Permission granted to re-amend defence to plead Reynolds privilege and general bad reputation.
  • Trial to be by judge alone, not by jury.