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Richard Desmond loses libel action against author
24.07.09
A jury at London's High Court took nearly four hours to decide by a majority that the Express Group boss was not defamed in Tom Bower's 2006 biography of the now disgraced former Daily Telegraph owner.
His QC, Ian Winter, had branded allegations that he ordered a negative story about Black after litigation over a printing plant and was then forced into a humiliating climbdown during a 2003 libel mediation as "wholly false".
Mr Bower denied libel and said what he wrote in Conrad And Lady Black: Dancing On The Edge was substantially true and was not, in any event, defamatory.
But Mr Winter said the disputed passages contained 10 defamatory factual errors, which were not addressed in court.
He said that the two press barons had reached agreement years ago and disputed Mr Thwaites's assertion that Mr Desmond brought the action out of wounded pride to show he was not a "wimp".
The action was not about money but vindication for his reputation as the claims could be very damaging in business, Mr Winter said.
Mr Desmond left with his lawyers and made no immediate comment about the jury's verdict.
Outside the courtroom a delighted Mr Bower was approached by several members of the jury requesting his signature on their copies of his book.
As he happily signed the books, he told jurors: "I am very grateful to you. You have been an absolutely marvellous jury.
"You have done a great service to British journalism."
Speaking to journalists after the verdict, Mr Bower commented: "I think I was the victim of a very rich man trying to suppress the truth."
After his defeat, Mr Desmond faces a costs bill unofficially estimated at around £1.25 million.
Mr Desmond later expressed satisfaction at the end of his three week High Court battle against Mr Bower.
He stated: "I sued Mr Bower for defamation because he made inaccurate and damaging allegations about me, yet he refused to apologise and publish a correction.
"Bower made a series of errors about events and timings and even got the name of one of my newspapers wrong.
"His biggest mistake was in thinking I would not go to court to uphold my reputation and the resulting action has cost many hundreds of thousands of pounds to defend a few ill-thought-out remarks that were not even essential to his book."
Mr Desmond concluded: "It was worth it to stand up in court and set the record straight."
Reader views (7)
Ted
the man is a crook many other media moguls are worse but doesn't change the fact Black is a theif. I suppose you believe Archer was innocent as well?
- Duncan, Kent
Paul, London - It's called `having an opinion` based upon a comprehensive reading of trial notes and gut instinct. Happy with that?
- Ted, London
Ted, what did you put on your cornflaks this morning? I'll just have a small one because it's obviously strong stuff. Black is simply a crook.
- Paul, London
Mr Desmond, you have lost your libel action. The jury did not agree with your libel action. So whatever Bower has wriiten about your are true.
- Max, London
As ever, a nasty smell surrounds the conviction and imprisonment of Conrad Black.
As for me, I like the man and believe that he got a bum deal - and for a guy of his intellectual strength and skills to be languishing in the clink, plus the attendant ruination of his reputation and resultant family catastrophe - I hope that he will eventually be cleared of his alleged offences, fully compensated and released sooner than later.
- Ted, London
British libel laws are ridiculous and benefit nobody except for the lawyers. Time for these bad laws to go for good.
- Matt, London, UK
'Outside the courtroom a delighted Mr Bower was approached by several members of the jury requesting his signature on their copies of his book.
As he happily signed the books, he told jurors: "I am very grateful to you. You have been an absolutely marvellous jury.'
Possibly an extremely unwise move, justifying however tenuously an appeal by Mr Desmond.
- Mdj E10, london uk
