Nail v. Jones
England and Wales High Court of Justice, Queens Bench Division
(2004) EWHC 647 (QB) (2004)

- Written by Sarah Holley, JD
Facts
Jimmy Nail was a well-known film and television actor. In 1998, Geraint Jones (defendant) authored and Harper Collins Publishers Ltd. (defendant) published a book entitled Nailed: The Biography of Jimmy Nail. Nail found the book offensive and full of inaccuracies, but, fearing a lawsuit might bring more attention to the book than would otherwise be the case, decided not to institute legal proceedings. Then, in 2002, Newsgroup Newspapers Ltd. (defendant) published an article in News of the World entitled “Auf Wiedersehen Jimmy’s Secret Bondage Orgies.” The article recounted numerous stories of Nail’s alleged sexual exploits, and painted Nail as arrogant, rude, and inconsiderate to extras on film and television sets. The article was based in large part on the contents of the book, and there was a note at the foot of the article telling readers where to purchase the book at a discounted price. Nail then brought a defamation suit against Newsgroup for the offending article, and against Jones and Harper Collins for the book. The defendants made an offer of amends, which Nail accepted, and apologies were published. The remaining issue was the appropriate amount of damages to be awarded to Nail under Section 3(5) of the Defamation Act.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Eady, J.)
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