Richard v British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) & Anor

Richard v British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) & Anor

The balance of interests favours disclosure: the claimant's need for the information to make or rebut material points in the case outweighs the low risk of source identification and the diminished chilling effect, especially since Operation Yewtree has already been identified as a possible source. The BBC must answer the question posed.

Parties
Claimant: Sir Cliff Richard OBE; First Defendant: The British Broadcasting Corporation; Second Defendant: Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
26 May 2017
Procedural Posture
Civil / Interlocutory Application Ruling
Outcome
application granted
Legal Topics
Journalistic Source Protection, Reasonable Expectation of Privacy, Public Interest Defence, Balancing of Rights, Disclosure of Information, Contempt of Court Act 1981, European Convention on Human Rights
Privacy Media Law Data Protection Human Rights Journalistic Source Protection Reasonable Expectation of Privacy Public Interest Defence Balancing of Rights +3 more

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Parties

Sir Cliff Richard OBE

Claimant

The British Broadcasting Corporation

First Defendant

Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police

Second Defendant

Procedural Posture

Civil / Interlocutory Application Ruling

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the BBC must answer a question about the nature of its journalistic source without risking disclosure of the source's identity
  2. 2 Whether Article 10 ECHR and section 10 Contempt of Court Act 1981 protect information about a journalistic source beyond identity
  3. 3 How to balance the claimant's rights to information for a fair trial against the journalist's rights to protect source confidentiality

Ratio Decidendi

The balance of interests favours disclosure: the claimant's need for the information to make or rebut material points in the case outweighs the low risk of source identification and the diminished chilling effect, especially since Operation Yewtree has already been identified as a possible source. The BBC must answer the question posed.

Court Disposition

application granted

Orders

  • The BBC must provide a proper answer to the claimant's question regarding the nature of Mr Johnson's source.