Kate Wilson
Call: 2005
Call: 2005
Kate Wilson is an experienced junior, acting for claimants and defendants. She has extensive defamation trial experience and has a track record of obtaining substantial damages for claimant clients. During her time as panel counsel on the Attorney General’s Panel, Kate represented the AG / Solicitor General in a number of diverse contempt of court proceedings.
Kate is ranked in Band 1 for Defamation / Privacy in both Chambers and Partners and the Legal 500. She is also ranked by both directories for Data Protection work.
Kate has extensive experience acting for claimants and defendants in a diverse range of defamation actions, and has experience at all levels of court.
Junior counsel for the musician, Roger Waters, defending a defamation claim by the journalist John Ware in respect to an interview which Mr Waters gave to Al Jazeera. During that interview Mr Waters commented upon a documentary which Mr Ware had made about him. Following a preliminary issue trial, focused in particular on the issue of whether the defamatory statement was opinion or fact, Eady J held that it contained both. The allegation that the claimant had made a documentary that “contained lies about [Roger Waters], and he had done that as a response to [his] public support for the Palestinian cause because he (the claimant) was acting as a Zionist mouthpiece and wanted to undermine what [Roger Waters] was saying” was held to be a statement of opinion: [2025] EWHC 389 (KB).
Counsel for the claimant in a libel action brought by one journalist against another, in respect to a highly defamatory article published on Substack and via Twitter, concerning the claimant’s work on a documentary for the BBC. Ultimately judgment was entered for Mr Northcott, and Julian Knowles J awarded him substantial damages of £95,000: [2024] EWHC 2704 (KB).
Counsel for the claimant in a libel action brought by a businessman in respect of five posts on LinkedIn by a former employee of one of his companies (but, in respect to which, the defendant had claimed to be the claimant’s business partner). The posts falsely accused the claimant of dishonesty. Following the remedies trial in November 2023, the claimant was awarded damages of £85,000 and non-monetary remedies. Two years later, the defendant’s attempt to set aside the above judgment was dismissed. The court holding that it did not have jurisdiction: [2025] EWHC 3201 (KB).
Junior counsel for the claimant in a defamation claim by an officer at a law enforcement agency in respect of an article in The Sun. The article had reported on criminal proceedings at which Mr Seeley had given evidence for the prosecution, but it focused on one allegation which had been put to him in cross-examination. NGN initially contended that the defence of absolute privilege applied. After an interim hearing at which the defendant’s application for a preliminary issue trial of the privilege defence was rejected, NGN settled in May 2023, paying damages and apologising in a Joint Statement in Court.
Junior counsel for the defendants in a malicious falsehood claim by a company in respect of numerous LinkedIn messages sent by the first defendant which related to commercial litigation between the claimant and second defendant and others. The defendants successfully applied to strike out the claimant’s special damages claim: [2021] EWHC 3810 (KB). The claim settled in 2023 following a hearing of an application to determine the reasonably available meanings conveyed by the various LinkedIn posts and a cross-application to rely upon expert evidence of foreign law in three jurisdictions.
Junior counsel for Johnny Depp, for trial, in his libel action against The Sun.
Junior counsel for the appellant, for the appeal only, in a malicious falsehood claim arising from the release of an announcement via the London Stock Exchange’s regulatory news service. The appeal concerned, inter alia, the meaning of damage within s3 of the Defamation Act 1952.
Counsel for Anna Turley, a Labour MP, in her successful libel action against Unite the Union and a blogger, in which the union was found to be liable for the allegations in the defamatory post on The Skwawkbox blog. Ms Turley was awarded £75,000 damages following a trial at which defences under sections 2 and 4 of the Defamation Act 2013 were rejected: [2019] EWHC 3547 (QB). The defendants were also ordered to pay an uplift to damages because Ms Turley had beaten a Part 36 offer.
Kate acted for the claimants in the phone hacking/ unlawful information gathering litigation against NGN Ltd between 2021 and 2024, including the claimants’ successful resistance to NGN’s applications for the court to impose a cut-off date for new claims in the managed litigation scheme ([2022] EWHC 891 (Ch)) and for limitation (specifically the parties’ cases under s32 of the Limitation Act 1980) to be tried as a preliminary issue [2024] EWHC 902 (Ch).
The music executive Alan McGee brought a claim for breach of privacy (together with harassment and libel) against a recording artist for various posts on social media, in particular Instagram. The posts included publication of private messages exchanged when the claimant and defendant had been in a relationship. After the claimant obtained default judgment ([2023] EWHC 1813 (KB)), the defendant sought to have it set aside. After various hearings, the defendant gave undertakings. Kate acted for Mr McGee.
Kate acted for a third party on a successful application for his identity to be withheld from the public, together with other orders to protect his privacy, in proceedings concerned with allegations concerning an alleged exploitative cult.
Kate’s recent work has included acting for a claimant (anonymised) who brought a claim against South Wales Police for breaches of the accuracy principle in various police records which had been obtained pursuant to an earlier subject access request. Kate has previously acted for both claimants and defendants in claims arising from data breaches affecting a substantial number of individuals in respect of health data and biometric data.
Counsel for the claimant, a Tanzanian politician, in a claim for breach of the accuracy principle (and for libel) in respect of numerous posts on X. Judgment obtained in April 2025 with compensation to be assessed.
Kate has been successful in obtaining injunctive relief in harassment claims brought in respect of both harassment by publication and by non-publication conduct.
Proceedings under ss1(1A) and s3A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 to protect HMRC’s officers from harassment suffered in the course of carrying out tax inquiries. An interim injunction was granted without notice ([2024] EWHC 492 (KB)) and continued at the return date. The claim settled against one defendant and the other later gave undertakings to the court. Kate acted for HMRC.
The music executive Alan McGee brought a claim for harassment (together with claims for libel and breach of privacy) against a recording artist for a campaign on social media, in particular Instagram. The posts included publication of private messages exchanged when the claimant and defendant had been in a relationship. After the claimant obtained default judgment ([2023] EWHC 1813 (KB)), the defendant sought to have it set aside. After various hearings, the defendant gave undertakings. Kate acted for Mr McGee.
Kate has varied experience in contempt of court matters, both civil contempt, in respect to breaches of orders and undertakings, and criminal contempt, having been a member of the Attorney General’s Panel for 5 years. She is a contributor to Arlidge, Eady & Smith on Contempt.
Kate has acted for media organisations and private individuals in applications concerning reporting restrictions and access to documents, in particular in family proceedings.
Counsel for respondent expert psychologist on application by a journalist for “retrospective transparency orders”/ documents in concluded private law family proceedings.
Contempt proceedings following a defendant’s failure to comply with injunctions, made following judgment for the claimants in breach of confidence proceedings: Kate acted for the claimants.
Contempt proceedings for breaches of a Reporting Restriction Order made in criminal proceedings and for interference with the due administration of justice. The defendant had taken videos/ photos in the court building and published posts on social media identifying witnesses who had been granted anonymity. Kate represented the Solicitor General.
Counsel for the claimants seeking contra mundum injunctions to protect them from being identified. One of the claimants had been a key prosecution witness in criminal proceedings relating to serious organised crime. He and his family were at risk. An interim injunction was obtained at short notice as protection in the criminal proceedings was about to expire. The Divisional Court granted a final permanent injunction: [2021] EWHC 1328 (QB) & [2021] EWHC 3284 (QB).
Counsel for Sir Frederick Barclay on an application for publication of a judgment in financial remedy proceedings following his divorce, and for other reporting restrictions.
Junior Counsel for Princess Haya bint Al Hussein on an application to permit reporting of judgments given in wardship proceedings in the Family Division brought by the ruler of Dubai, and in response to HH Sheik Mohammed’s unsuccessful appeal: [2020] EWCA Civ 283.
For more information
For more information or to instruct Kate please get in touch with our clerking team, who can deal with your enquiry and provide any required information: