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ARTICLE · 25 JUNE 2018

Courts overturn record defamation payout to Rebel Wilson

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This appeal decision indicates that courts in Victoria will take a strict approach to awarding damages for defamation.

AustraliaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Eleanor Grounds
Eleanor Grounds
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The Victorian Court of Appeal has overturned actress Rebel Wilson's record defamation payout, reducing the award of more than $4.5 million in damages to $600,000. The Court of Appeal handed down its decision in Bauer Media Pty Ltd v Wilson (No 2) [2018] VSCA 154 on 14 June 2018, finding that Ms Wilson was not entitled to any economic losses, and reduced the damages for non-economic loss by $50,000.

Record-breaking damages award by the Supreme Court of Victoria

In September 2017 the Supreme Court of Victoria ordered the defendants Bauer Media Pty Ltd and Bauer Media Australia Pty Ltd (collectively Bauer) pay Ms Wilson $4,567,472 in damages for losses she had suffered due to defamatory material published by Bauer-owned publications including Woman's Day, Woman's Weekly and OK Magazine. The articles conveyed a number of defamatory imputations, namely that Ms Wilson was untrustworthy and a serial liar, and had lied about her age, name and aspects of her childhood.

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