Year: 2009

Updated guidelines on the circumstances in which reporting restrictions may be imposed in criminal cases have been published by the Judicial Studies Board, in collaboration with the media.   Guidance for lawyers, judges, magistrates and… Read More »

Stanley Bloom, a chartered accountant, was awarded £30,000 damages for libel and harassment by Mrs Justice Sharp today. Following a two day trial, the Judge held that seven letters written by Margaret Robinson-Millar, a neighbour… Read More »

The Chairman of the Bar, Desmond Browne QC, today warned of the erosion of individual privacy at the hands of the state at a fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference in manchester. Desmond Browne… Read More »

A Dutch company and entrepreneur have been ordered to pay the costs incurred by a UK company, Md7 Europe, and its Chief Executive, Michael Gianni, in defending themselves against a US$30m claim in slander, malicious falsehood and  interference with business by… Read More »

The Press Complainants Commission has announced three revisions to the Editor’s Code of Practice. Ian Beales, Code Committee Secretary, said that the changes, which will take effect from 19 October 2009, "are intended to strengthen… Read More »

The fifth annual Chambers & Partners Bar Awards were held last night at the Grosvenor House Hotel, London. 5RB‘s Matthew Nicklin won the Defamation Junior Barrister of the Year for a second time, having previously won… Read More »

Anna Coppola has returned to Chambers today following maternity leave. For any enquiries, please contact the clerks, Kim Janes, John Sizer or Andrew Love on 02072422902 or by email, clerks@5rb.com.

The annual Legal 500 review of the legal profession has once again named 5RB as a leading set in Defamation and Privacy and in Media, Entertainment and Sport. The independent survey found that 5RB enjoys ‘fantastic clerking‘ and is a ‘leading libel set, with… Read More »

5RB‘s juniors were generally said to be of ‘outstanding quality’.  Individuals were praised as follows: ‘Intellectually incisive‘ Stephen Bate was described as a “copyright and licensing expert.” In Justin Rushbrooke‘s ‘depth of expertise‘, David Sherborne ‘… Read More »

The  Ministry of Justice today launched a consultation on the multiple publication rule and how it applies to the internet Currently, the law allows a claim to be brought each time a libel is published…. Read More »

A pilot scheme designed to control costs in libel, slander and malicious falsehood claims will be introduced in the autumn. Details of the scheme, which will run for one year at the Royal Courts of Justice… Read More »

The Met Police have issued new guidance to police officers on the use of anti-terrorism legislation against media photographers and other members of the public with cameras.  The new guidance warns police officers to exercise… Read More »

The science writer Simon Singh has been refused leave to appeal by the Court of Appeal in relation to a ruling on meaning in a libel claim brought against him by the British Chiropractic Association. … Read More »

Jacob Zuma, the President of South Africa, accepted libel damages and an apology from The Guardian today in the High Court. In a unilateral statement in open court read today, the court heard that President… Read More »

Frank Warren was today awarded £35,000 in the High Court in libel damages in respect of false claims made last year by boxer Herbie Hide on Setanta Sports News that Warren had paid a boxer… Read More »

Legal information provider Sweet & Maxwell has published figures which show that there has been a significant rise in the number of libel cases being brought, particularly by businesses. The Sweet & Maxwell figures record… Read More »

The jury in the trial of the libel action brought by Express Newspapers owner Richard Desmond against writer Tom Bower returned a verdict for the defendant this evening. Mr Desmond brought the libel claim against Mr Bower in respect… Read More »

5RB’s Joint Head of Chambers, Desmond Browne QC, has been named in The Times newspaper’s list of ‘Britain’s most powerful lawyers’. The choices of the newspaper’s judging panel span all types of legal work, from academia to the… Read More »

One jockey has admitted deliberate ‘non-trying’, and he and 3 others have admitted involvement in the use of inside information for gambling, at the end of an Inquiry by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) into… Read More »

The High Court ruled last week that Google was not a publisher at common law in respect of defamatory statements appearing as part of the information snippets published in its search engine results. In only… Read More »