ARTICLE · 01 JULY 2021

Defamation claim and mixed martial arts - case note

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Defamations cases must be genuine and must have actually caused damage to the reputation of the plaintiff. Recent case example.

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A defamation claim in McEwan v McDaniel [2020] QDC 321, is a case where the Court considered an application brought by Mr McEwan for alleged defamatory comments made by Mr McDaniel in a video, and then posted to Facebook.

The statement of claim alleges that the publication by the defendant contained defamatory imputations such as calling the plaintiff a "weasel", a "petty little man" and a "dill pickle".

The statement of claim alleges that the defendant also states that the plaintiff's business products "suck" and are "crappy".

The defendant did not file a defence to the defamation claim. The plaintiff obtained default judgment with damages to be assessed. The matter proceeded to a damages hearing.

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