Gary Hevey Gordon & Jackson 9225 8075 9225 7333 ...

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for “outing” the wrong man. One can only assume that Ms Hardy will search
for the correct blogger and seek to make good the money that she has lost.
Costs
49. It is important to remember that in matters involving defamation the potential
for the award of costs on an indemnity basis to the successful party is very
real 54 . Having regard to the attempts to resolve matters before ending at court a
successful party may be in a strong position when arguing that having
reasonably attempted to settle the matter then they ought to be awarded
indemnity costs as allowed under the Act.
Time limits – ONE YEAR
50. The other matter that is of paramount importance to any solicitor considering
a potential defamation action is the time limit. In the original Act section 48
prescribed the relevant time limits for the commencement of an action but these
were repealed in 2011 and are now to be found in sections 5(1AAA) and 23B of
the Limitation of Actions Act 1958. Section 5(1AAA) prescribes one year from
the date of publication for the bringing of an action for defamation. There is
provision within section 23B to extend that period to a maximum of three years
(but no longer) where it was not reasonable in the circumstances for the plaintiff
to have commenced an action in relation to the matter complained of within one
year of the publication. An application for an extension may be made even
though the one year period has passed.
54 Section 40
Gary Hevey
Gordon & Jackson
9225 8075 9225 7333