IN BRIEF
The District Court of NSW has ordered a Defendant who posted
defamatory statements on Twitter and Facebook about a local school
teacher, to pay $105,000 in compensatory damages .This decision,
the first of its kind in Australia, sends a clear message that
personal attacks using social media will not be tolerated.
THE FACTS
The Plaintiff, Ms Christine Mickle, an esteemed teacher with an
established and excellent reputation and with many years
experience, taught in the music and arts department at Orange High
School. In November 2012 students approached the School Principal
to request that there be a re-naming of the music centre as the
"Mrs Mickle Music Centre" in honour of the Plaintiff and
her history of devotion to her students and classes. The Defendant
was an ex-student of Orange High School, and son of a former Orange
High School music and arts teacher who left the school in 2008 in
order to attend to personal issues. It is understood from
