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

2
That distinction is abolished by the Defamation Act 2005 3 . The ever changing
world of communications through social media is leading to new challenges as
will be highlighted later in this paper.
5. The tort of defamation provides a remedy in damages designed to vindicate the
aggrieved person’s reputation and to provide consolation, insofar as can be done
by money, for the hurt suffered by the aggrieved person. At common law
damages were at large and included compensatory, aggravated, exemplary and
punitive damages.
6. In March 2010 a jury in the Supreme Court of Victoria awarded Dyson Hore-
Lacey SC of the Victorian Bar $600,000 by way of compensatory damages plus
$30,000 for exemplary damages having found him to have been defamed in a
book entitled Getting Away With Murder concerning the defence raised in the
Ramage murder case of 2003.
The book, written by Mr Phil Cleary and
published by Allen and Unwin, suggested certain conduct by Hore-Lacy.
Interest and costs were in addition to the amount awarded and was one of the
largest claims awarded in Victoria. One other that remains in memory is that of
Ron Clarke, athlete extraordinaire, who in 2000 sued the ABC’s 7.30 Report
for comments made alleging that he was building a sporting complex over a
toxic dump. While his solicitors had sent a Calderbank offer shortly before trial
indicating that the plaintiff was prepared to settle for $75,000 the jury awarded
him $1,000,000 for the hurt to his reputation.
7. A few other cases that indicate the value placed on reputations might be thought
to be at different ends of the scale are mentioned here having regard to the cap
on damages introduced by the uniform legislation that will be covered shortly.
3 Sub-section 7(1)
Gary Hevey
Gordon & Jackson
9225 8075 9225 7333