Kelly v Davis & Anor [2022] NSWDC 352

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Kelly v Davis & Anor [2022] NSWDC 352 Hearing dates: 8, 9 August 2022 Date of orders: 18 August 2022 Decision date: 18 August 2022 Jurisdiction: Civil Before: Abadee DCJ Decision: See paragraph 257 Catchwords: DEFAMATION – plaintiff and first and third defendants all university students - Facebook posts on social media published by the first and third defendants on sites associated with two universities – whether each of the matters complained of identified the plaintiff – whether each of the matters complained of conveyed the alleged imputations – whether triviality defence applicable to each of the matters complained of – whether, in the case of the third defendant, the defences of qualified privilege (in statute and in common law) applicable – consideration of damages Legislation Cited: Defamation Act 2005 (NSW) ss 30, 34, 38 Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW) rr 15.19, 15.31, 15.32, 41.1, 41.2 Cases Cited: ABC v Chau Chak Wing (2019) 271 FCR 632 Adam v Ward [1917] AC 309 Aktas v Westpac Banking Corporation (2010) 241 CLR 79 Barrow v Bolt [2015] VSCA 107 Bashford v Information Australia (Newsletters) Pty Ltd (2004) 218 CLR 366 Bristow v Adams [2012] NSWCA 166 Carson v John Fairfax & Sons Ltd (1993) 178 CLR 44 Channel Seven Sydney Pty Ltd v Parras [2002] NSWCA 202 Chau v Fairfax Media Publications Pty Ltd [2019] FCA 185 Consolidated Trust Company Ltd v Browne (1948) 49 SR (NSW) 86 Cross v Denley (1952) 52 SR (NSW) 112 Cush v Dillon (2011) 243 CLR 298 David Syme & Co v Canavan (1918) 25 CLR 234 Dutton v Bazzi [2022] FCAFC 84 Fairfax Media Publications Pty Ltd v Chau [2020] FCAFC 48 Goldberg v Voigt [2020] NSWDC 174 Herron v HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty Ltd (2022) 400 ALR 56 John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd v Zunter [2006] NSWCA 227 Jones v Sutton (2004) 61 NSWLR 614 King v Greenwood [2022] NSWDC 61 Lee v Wilson and MacKinnon (1934) 51 CLR Lewis v Daily Telegraph Ltd [1964] AC 234 Loveday v Sunday Newspapers Ltd (1938) 59 CLR 503 Megna v Marshall [2010] NSWSC 68 Mickle v Farley [2013] NSWDC 295 Morosi v Mirror Newspapers Ltd [1977] 2 NSWLR 749 Mowlds v Fergusson (1940) 64 CLR 206 Murray v Raynor [2019] NSWCA 274 Northern Territory v Sangare (2019) 265 CLR 164 Palmer v McGowan (No.5) [2022] FCA 893 Papaconstantinos v Holmes 'A Court (2012) 249 CLR 534 Penton v Calwell (1945) 70 CLR 219 Perkins v New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council (unreported, NSWSC, 15 August 1997) Raynor v Murray [2019] NSWDC 18 Roberts v Bass (2002) 212 CLR 1 Steele v Mirror Newspapers Ltd [1974] 2 NSWLR 348 Stocker v Stocker [2020] AC 593 Stoltenberg v Bolton (2020) 380 ALR 145 Toogood v Spyring (1834) 1 C M & R 181 Younan v Nationwide News Pty Ltd [2013] NSWCA 335 Zoef v Nationwide News Pty Ltd [2016] NSWCA 283 Texts Cited: Tobin, T. K. and Sexton, M.G, Australian Defamation Law and Practice (LexisNexis, loose-leaf service) Category: Principal judgment Parties: Mr M Kelly (plaintiff) Mr O Davis (first defendant) Ms J Chan (third defendant) Representation: Mr Kelly represented himself Mr Elachkar (Counsel) for the first defendant Mr Vogel (solicitor) for the third defendant File Number(s): 2020/00272992 Publication restriction: Nil