Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

England and Wales: One-off allegation of professional incompetence can be defamatory – Morgan v Times Newspaper Ltd [2019] EWHC 1525 (QB)

Published on: 04 July 2019

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Article summary

Morgan v Times Newspaper Ltd [2019] EWHC 1525 (QB)

What are the practical implications of this case?

This decision addresses the test for assessing whether remarks about professional competence are defamatory. The defendant maintained that defamation of a person’s professional (or business) reputation requires an imputation of an habitual or entrenched trait, not a single episode of negligence or ineptitude. The court emphatically rejected that contention, explaining that one instance of incompetent professional work can harm reputation as much as a charge against overall competence—illustrated by a barrister whose performance in one case could be decisive. The judgment also offers a useful synthesis of the authorities in this area, including discussion and application of Skuse v Granada Television Ltd [1996] EMLR 278, together with consideration of various commentary on the topic.

What was the background?

This libel claim arose from an article published by the defendant newspaper headed ‘Senior Prosecutor under fire after Stokes is cleared of affray’. The ‘Senior Prosecutor’ referred to is the...

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