Visit JCPCUKSC/2019/0156
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PRIVACY/INFORMATION
Serafin (Respondent) v Malkiewicz and others (Appellants)
Case summary
Case ID
UKSC/2019/0156
Parties
Appellant(s)
Grzegorz Malkiewicz
Czas Publishers Ltd
Teresa Bazarnik-Malkiewicz
Respondent(s)
Jan Tomasz Serafin
Issue
The breadth of the public interest defence in section 4 Defamation Act 2013 and in particular, whether the defence is available where the allegations complained of relate to an individual’s private conduct towards a body in relation to which there is a public interest, rather than to the running of that body; Whether the CA was entitled to interfere with the judge’s factual findings; Whether rudeness, and/or "descending into the arena" on the part of the judge can be sufficient to render a trial unfair.
Facts
The Appellants published an article about Mr Serafin in a Polish-language monthly magazine widely read by the London Polish community, which alleged that he had fraudulently profited at the expense of the charitable organisations for which he volunteered, and that he obtained a series of loans and investments into his business from various individuals, including two women with whom he was in simultaneous intimate relationships, and then stole their money for himself. At trial, Mr Justice Jay was highly critical of Mr Serafin, found most of their allegations proved, and held that the public interest defence applied to all of them.
Date of issue
15 July 2019
Judgment appealed
Judgment details
Judgment date
3 June 2020
Neutral citation
[2020] UKSC 23
Judgment links
Judgment summary
3 June 2020
Appeal
Justices
Hearing dates
Full hearing
Start date
17 March 2020
End date
18 March 2020
Watch hearings
17 March 2020 - Morning session
17 March 2020 - Afternoon session
18 March 2020 - Morning session
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Last updated 16 April 2024