Verbal Injury Flashcards
What are the three types of verbal injury?
(a) Verbal Injury affecting business
(b) False statements with intent of exposing the defender to public hatred, contempt and ridicule
(c) Slander on a third party.
Why is verbal injury difficult to pursue?
As malice is not presumed and the pursuer must prove there is intent to injure.
What is slander of title?
When someone has made an allegations in an attempt to injure pursuers sales e.g. that you don’t own goods you are selling.
What is slander of property?
Allegations made against the quality or substance of a rival merchants goods.
What happened in Hamilton v Arbuthnott?
Rival merchant described other merchant’s goods as “rotten trash”. Damages were awarded.
What case sets out falsehood causing business loss well?
Steele v Daily Record and Sunday Mail Ltd 1970;
- Article took into account a customers side of story only
- Man was going to purchase a van for business and paid a £100 deposit with a further £350 to pay
- It emerged he could not afford it due to unforeseen circumstances
- The pursuer in this case, Steele, refused to refund him but said he could buy a car for £110, the man after purchasing found a sign stating it was £95 but was refused a refund from Steele
- Man gives inaccurate story to Daily Mail to which Mr Steele objects and sues
- Law played out;
(a) Statement complained of must be false and was for the pursuer to prove that.
(b) Intent to injure must be established
(c) must show business losses for patrimonial award. - He failed as he did not show sufficient damage to personal reputation and didn’t prove business losses to an extent of receiving patrimonial award.
What elements must be proved to satisfy a claim for verbal injury?
(a) public hatred
(b) contempt
(c) Ridicule
What is an example of all elements of verbal injury being proved?
Paterson v Welsh 1893 in which a member of board of governors of Madras school in St Andrews was quoted saying he did not want the well being of the school ‘contaminated’ by working class children. Public outcry was huge and pursuer entitled to damages.
What is slander on a third party?
Where a party is injured indirectly consequent on a statement aimed at someone else.
What is the complication with protecting invasions of privacy in respect of the ECHR?
There is tension between Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) and Article 10 (freedom of expression ) of the ECHR.
What was established in the case of Von Hannover v Germany?
- That German courts were wrong in their conclusion that the daughter of a monarchy did not have her privacy breached when photographs were taken of her out shopping. The German court said for privacy to be breached it must be where you were somewhere secluded. However, the ECHR stated German law was not protecting privacy as the ‘secluded’ nature was too vague. Invaded right to privacy under Article 8 as she had the right not to have pictures taken of her when on daily business.
What is the Scottish position on privacy?
Most litigation takes place in London.
What is the law of confidentiality?
A wrong to disseminate (spread) information gleaned (obtained) from relationships of confidence (professional or intimate).
What case illustrates the law of confidentiality being breached?
Prince Albert v Strange (1849).
- Prince Albert and Queen Victoria created copper plates of art.
- Servant obtained a piece of this art and sold to third party who published
- Prince did not want people to see these, nor did he want them published
- He successfully sought an injunction on the basis of confidence being breached as the servant was in a position of confidence and breached the trust of the Prince because of that position.
What did the case of Campbell v MGN establish with regard to the law of confidentiality?
That there was no need for prior relationship.
- In this case Naomi Campbell was pictured leaving rehab clinic
- Photos were published
- She brought a case against the publisher and one on the grounds that the newspapers were not free to publish this (despite there being public interest)
- Court drew an analogy that her privacy had been breached on the basis of wrongful publication of confidential information.
