Campion v. France - 35726/10 [2019] ECHR 215 (14 March 2019)

The applicant failed to provide any material capable of substantiating his serious defamatory remarks, and the requirement to do so did not exceed the margin of appreciation of the French courts. The penalties imposed were not excessive or chilling, and the interference with freedom of expression was necessary to protect the reputation of others.

Citation: [2019] ECHR 215
Parties: Applicant: Mr Campion; Accomplice: Publication Director; Accomplice: Journalist; Alleged Victim: Mr Strauss-Kahn
Jurisdiction: European Union
Judgment Date: 14 March 2019
Procedural Posture: Application to the European Court of Human Rights / Decision on Admissibility
Outcome: application inadmissible as manifestly ill-founded
Legal Topics: Freedom of Expression, Defamation, Margin of Appreciation, Protection of Reputation

Human Rights Law Defamation Law Freedom of Expression Defamation Margin of Appreciation Protection of Reputation

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Parties

Mr Campion

Applicant

Publication Director

Accomplice

Journalist

Accomplice

Mr Strauss-Kahn

Alleged Victim

Procedural Posture

Application to the European Court of Human Rights / Decision on Admissibility

Legal Issues

1 Whether the interference with the applicant's freedom of expression was disproportionate
2 Whether the national courts wrongly refused the defence of good faith

Ratio Decidendi

Court Disposition

application inadmissible as manifestly ill-founded

Orders

Applicant fined 2,000 euros (suspended sentence)
Ordered to pay 1,500 euros in damages jointly with publication director and journalist