Appeal against Rachel Riley libel win is submitted to the court
The Royal Courts of Justice in London: will Mike’s appeal get a fair hearing here?
My appeal against the libel judgment against me has been submitted to the Court of Appeal – minutes before the deadline.
Grounds for appeal and a skeleton argument were drafted by my Counsel, with a little input from myself, and we must now await a decision.
I can’t say too much about it, but it centres on the judge’s failure to have regard for all the circumstances of the case, as required by the Defamation Act 2013, her failure to consider my editorial judgement in putting together the article Rachel Riley complained about… and one serious procedural irregularity.
It’s a long shot, and I have been warned not to have too much hope. But the public interest defence is a developing area of law and my appeal is based on points of law and procedure that – it may be argued – should be clarified.
Now all I have to do is pay for it.
As I mentioned in a previous update, my Counsel’s costs are around £7,000 and my solicitors say theirs may also go that high. Recent donations to CrowdJustice mean the unspent fund stands at around £5,000. I would certainly like to be able to pay my Counsel before the end of the week.
So, if you can help, please:
Make a donation via the CrowdJustice page. Keep donating regularly until you see the total pass the amount I need.
Email your friends, asking them to pledge to the CrowdJustice site.
Post a link to Facebook, asking readers to pledge.
On Twitter, tweet in support, quoting the address of the appeal.
Use other social media in the same way.
And don’t forget that if you’re having trouble, or simply don’t like donating via CrowdJustice, you can always donate direct to me via the Vox Political PayPal button, where it appears on that website. But please remember to include a message telling me it’s for the crowdfund!
These are exciting times – again. While the chances of the appeal succeeding are slim, they would be nonexistant without your continuing support and I cannot tell you how much it means to my search for justice.
Let’s make sure this case can’t be ignored.
Have YOU donated to my crowdfunding appeal, raising funds to fight false libel claims by TV celebrities who should know better? These court cases cost a lot of money so every penny will help ensure that wealth doesn’t beat justice.
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