House of Lords find Hello! liable for breach of confidence
The House of Lords has today ruled, by a 3-2 majority, that Hello! magazine’s publication of unauthorised photographs of Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones’ wedding was in breach of confidence.
OK! magazine had entered into an exclusive deal for photographs of the wedding, and guests were prevented from prohibited from bringing cameras into the reception. Hello! nevertheless managed to purchase a number of surreptitiously obtained photographs and published them as a ‘spoiler’.
A majority of the House of Lords held that photographic information relating to the wedding was confidential, and that Hello!‘s publication of the images breached an obligation of confidence which OK! were entitled to enforce. Damages had been assessed by Lindsay J at over £1M.
Their Lordships also dealt with OK!‘s appeal in respect of the economic tort of causing loss by unlawful means (which was dismissed) and two other appeals relating to economic torts.
5RB‘s James Price QC (instructed by M Law) was lead counsel for Hello! Ltd.
Links
- OK! wins Zeta Jones photo appeal – BBC
- OK! and Hello! likely to split costs – Guardian
- OK! wins Zeta-Jones wedding picture fight – Independent
- Lords’ OK! ruling creates image rights monopoly – Lawyer
- Lords return £1 million to OK! in Catherine Zeta Jones case – Press Gazette
- Lords back OK! in final ruling – Reuters
- Ruling In ‘Wedding Crashers’ Pics Battle – Sky
- Lords rule in favour of OK! over Zeta Jones wedding photos – Telegraph
- Lords OK Hello!’s Zeta-Jones wedding payout – Times