David Hirst
Call: 2003
Call: 2003
David Hirst specialises in defamation, privacy and confidence, data protection, IP, harassment and other media and communications-related work and is recommended as a junior barrister in defamation in directories such as Chambers & Partners and Legal 500.
David undertakes a wide variety of work in the High Court, County Court and first tier tribunals and at mediations / ADR. David acts for media organisations and publishers, businesses, public figures and private individuals. David is public access accredited and can be instructed directly by members of the public and companies in suitable cases and by all publishers, tv, film and theatre producers and media companies for pre-publication advice.
David has an acknowledged interest and expertise in media law cases with technological aspects and in advising publishers and broadcasters on investigations. David advises very regularly on Norwich Pharmacal applications to disclose and trace anonymous activity online, pre-action disclosure and interim injunctive relief (whether in privacy, confidentiality, harassment or defamation).
Like all members of 5RB, David has a heavy caseload representing both claimants and defendants in defamation and malicious falsehood matters. David has recently represented authors and publishers in a number of high-profile claims on which the debates about strategic lawsuits against public participation were based, including Rosneft v Harpercollins, Abramovich v Belton, Eurasian Natural Resources Corporation Limited v Burgis and Jusan Technologies Ltd v openDemocracy Ltd.
David has extensive experience of all aspects of defamation litigation, including trials of preliminary issues, offer of amends, challenges to jurisdiction, and defences under section 4 (public interest), qualified and absolute privilege, truth and opinion. David has appeared led and unled, and on direct access, in the Court of Appeal on numerous occasions. David advises on jurisdictional challenges under s. 10 and s.9 Defamation Act 2013 (see Baig v Hassan).
Frequently clients are advised by David on strategies to identify unknown defamers or harassers online. David represented a school in an internet defamation claim through a process where the identity of the defendant was initially unknown, to judgment against them, on appeal, and then securing a substantial award of damages and an injunction (Tardios v Linton). David was instructed in the pre-action disclosure application in Anglia Research Ltd v Finders Genealogists Ltd, and often advises clients on an under-utlised jurisdiction.
Strategies for tackling adverse online publicity are frequently complex and international. David has wide experience of advising to protect individual or corporate reputations from attack, and where in the world it is best to do so, which may not be the UK.
David has 20 years of experience defending against vexatious and/or abusive defamation claims and securing early strike outs, or set asides based on invalidity of service.
David is defending a claim based on alleged breach of privacy in court proceedings.
David was involved in a 5 year dispute between a former employee and her employer over hacking of WhatsApp messages (which gave rise to a number of interlocutory rulings and appeals on a wide range of important civil procedure points).
David was instructed in a landmark appeal on the confidentiality and admissibility of irregularly acquired data on personal wealth in matrimonial finance proceedings.
David is instructed by businesses which seek to protect against misuse of their confidential information, such as trade secrets and confidential information (or conversely by individuals threatened with misuse of confidential information).
Represented a whistleblower in breach of confidence proceedings brought by his ex-employer which were eventually struck out.
David has a particular interest and specialisation in work on rights of erasure and to be forgotten in data protection law and has experience of more than 50 appeals to the Information Commissioner to enforce deindexing of search results which infringe GDPR rights.
David acted for a claimant bringing a direct claim for erasure / deindexing against a domestic media publisher.
David acted for a documentary maker in a freedom of information dispute over historic police files.
David has worked on cases obtaining interim injunctions to counter blackmail and threatened disclosures of sexual and personal financial information. David has routinely applied for and resisted applications for interim injunctions based on harassment, privacy, confidentiality and contract.
David has been instructed very regularly in bringing and defending a large number of harassment by publication-type claims in the High Court and County Court, at an interim stage and at trial and on appeal, by business and private individuals. David has successfully defended several persons prosecuted inappropriately for harassment by publication in the criminal courts. David is involved in a significant civil procedure appeal arising out of harassment actions brought without issuing claim forms.
David advises a large number of US, British and European media organisations, campaign groups, NGOs, think tanks, authors, artists, film and documentary makers on all aspects of media law and regulatory compliance. David has pre-publication experience over 20 years spanning to works for screen and stage, books (including self-published works), newspapers, magazines, stand-up comedy, and academic and governmental publications.
David works with major UK and international broadcasters on Ofcom compliance. He has 20 years of experience advising film and television producers on scripts and production edits for legal and compliance and insurance purposes. David works with authors, investigators, scriptwriters, editors and producers to ready output for release to the public, frequently to tight timeframes. David has handled several complaints for clients under the IPSO, BBC or Ofcom codes of practice, including in connection with harm/offence, fairness, accuracy, privacy and public interest.
David has extensive experience of contempt jurisdiction work, whether based on interference with the administration of justice, alleged prejudice to court proceedings by media publication or false statements by parties and witnesses. David has acted for clients enforcing breach of undertakings and injunctions via contempt of court. David has represented editors and media organisations where there have been allegations of contempt of court against them and they faced prospects of fines and convictions.
David is frequently instructed in cases relating to anonymity orders, protection of sources (including leading recent case Rio Tinto & Vale SA v Livingstone & Ors), and obtaining and contesting reporting restrictions in criminal courts and employment tribunals. David has advised media organisations several times on prosecutions for contempt for breaching reporting restrictions orders. David has substantial experience representing media in applications for access to documents and in closed proceedings in family courts and the Court of Protection (Times Newspapers Ltd v McNamara).
David advises clients on a range of soft IP issues, including copyright, trademarks and performers’ rights and passing off. David has advised broadcasters and publishers on issues around the intersection of free speech rights and intellectual property, including injunction applications against campaigners (Heythrop Zoological Gardens Ltd v Captive Animals Protection Society and The Brexit Party v LedByDonkeys).
David often advises photographers, artists, designers and businesses when threatened with intellectual property infringement claims, and, conversely acts for clients seeking to exploit and protect their rights, most often in the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court.
For more information
For more information or to instruct David please get in touch with our clerking team, who can deal with your enquiry and provide any required information: