Media law news from Abbas Media Law zoom-inSpring 2019 HOLDING COURT AT THE DIXON ED SHEERAN CASE GOES TO TRIAL ELTON AND GOOGLE LIZ SETTLE HACKING FINED CASE €50M INSTA WARS Shutterstock.com GIGI HADID IN CELEBS VS PAPS RIGHTS ROW Ovidiu Hrubaru / EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: PROPER CONTENT’S DAVID DEHANEY IN THIS ISSUE DEFAMATION 20 QUESTIONS Telegraph faces libel threat over Trump Proper Content’s David DeHaney on apology ......................................12 his life in TV ................................. 22 Supreme Court hears ‘tried to strangle’ claim ...........................................12 Sexual image claim struck out .........14 Bridal shop brings claim over negative reviews ........................................15 BBC report alleged corruption by Ukrainian President .......................15 BUSINESS AFFAIRS & RIGHTS Abbas Media Law’s production legal MEDIA HAUNTS schedule, setting out the five key How The Dixon has revitalised the old stages of TV production and the legal Tower Bridge Magistrates Court ..... 24 issues producers must consider. In this issue, we focus on distribution agreements ............................... 16 PRIVACY & DATA PROTECTION Chelsea Clinton settles case over WINNERS & LOSERS COPYRIGHT & IP RIGHTS children’s pictures ........................ 26 Elton and Liz settle hacking claims .... 4 Gigi Hadid sued for posting picture of Comedian case settles .................. 26 herself on Instagram ......................18 Richard Burgon MP awarded £30k .. 4 Bild loses bid to overturn photo ban 26 Netflix sued for trademark Facebook and Martin Lewis settle ..... 5 infringement ................................18 Google hit with €50m GDPR fine .... 27 Wolf of Wall St makers win case ........ 6 Ed Sheeran Let’s Get It On claim goes CBS pay out over JonBenét doc ....... 7 to trial ......................................... 20 CONTEMPT & REPORTING RESTRICTIONS Only Fools dining experience REGULATION – OFCOM, ASA & accused ......................................21 BBC exec acquitted after sexual offence IPSO victim named on air ...................... 29 New Can’t Pay? decisions .............. 8 Judge lifts order relating to gangland shooting ..................................... 29 Complaint upheld over wrong photo 9 Prosecutions for breach of Bulger killer George Galloway in breach ............10 injunction .................................... 30 Red Bull ad banned ....................... 11 Mother who ‘abducted’ children can be named ....................................31 zoom-in Abbas Media Law Editor Nigel Abbas Deputy Editor Clare Hoban zoom-in is written by the Abbas Media Law team. Features Editor Paul Hunwick We are a niche law firm advising on all aspects of Contributing Felicity UK law and regulation affecting the television, film, Editors McMahon advertising and publishing industries. Jenny Spearing Founded by Nigel Abbas, we work closely with Gervase de Wilde broadcasters, independent production companies of Paul Schaefer all sizes, and other content producers. Editorial Assistant Lucy Chisholm Batten Abbas Media Law is experienced in advising Sub-editor Jack Seale both before publication or broadcast, working with Art Director Tim Parker creatives to minimise their legal and regulatory risk, as Contact NIGEL ABBAS well as following publication or broadcast, defending ABBAS Media Law content when it – and its producers – come under attack. 1st Floor, 239 Kensington High Street, With particular expertise in television and film, we have advised on thou- London W8 6SN D: +44 207 316 3046 sands of hours of television over the past two decades, across all genres. M: +44 7831 311 080 zoom-in editor Nigel Abbas is also the primary author of Channel 4’s E: [email protected] Producers Handbook. www.abbasmedialaw.com Subscribe to zoom-in Subscribe to zoom-in at abbasmedialaw.com for essential media www.abbasmedialaw.com law and compliance news, analysis and updates. 2 | zoom-in Spring 2019 WINNERS & LOSERS Shutterstock.com THE ACTOR LIZ HURLEY HAS, ALONG WITH THE SINGER ELTON JOHN, SETTLED A PHONE- HACKING CLAIM AGAINST NEWS GROUP NEWSPAPERS: SEE P4 Everett Collection / Everett zoom-in Spring 2019 | 3 WINNERS & LOSERS Our quarterly round-up of high-profile legal winners and losers Elton John and Liz Hurley The law firm acting for the celebri- political editor Tom Newton Dunn, settle phone hacking ties pointed to the fact that this is the was published on The Sun’s website fourth claim in the past 18 months from 14 April 2017 and was head- claims that has settled very close to the start lined: ‘REICH AND ROLL Labour’s n Phone-hacking claims brought by of the trial date. justice boss ridiculed after he Elton John, Elizabeth Hurley and A partner at the The joins a heavy metal band Heather Mills against News Group firm said: ‘Notwith- that delights in Nazi Newspapers have settled just before standing the settle- readiness of symbols.’ the start of a High Court trial. ments and the Facebook to agree It reported The claims are the latest in the growing body that the MP long-running litigation, over alleg- of evidence, a large settlement was a member edly widespread phone hacking at the News Group reflects the increasingly of heavy metal company, to have been resolved on the Newspapers band Dream eve of trial. Ltd continue critical climate in Tröll, a group The distinctive feature of the to refuse to which social media which, it said, claims that have been settled over the acknowledge ‘uses the name of past two years is that they allege phone that any phone companies find Hitler’s infamous hacking took place not only at the hacking took place at themselves SS security unit as News of the World, which closed after The Sun.’ lettering in its promo- the revelation that a private inves- Although the prospect of tional posters’. tigator had hacked into the phone a contested trial, at which the claims of It linked the allegation to the messages of murdered schoolgirl Milly criminality at The Sun might be consid- Labour Party’s decision not to expel Dowler, but also at The Sun. ered by a judge, appears as distant as Ken Livingstone for making widely At a hearing shortly before the ever, the litigation is set to continue, criticised comments about Hitler. scheduled start of the trial, the claim- with further claims in the pipeline. The article came about when ants’ barrister David Sherborne told the Newton Dunn was alerted to the fact judge that one of the ‘generic’ issues to that the band, with which Burgon had be aired at the forthcoming trial centred 30k for MP over allegation once recorded a spoken-word piece, on allegations that such activities were he joined band using ‘Nazi had published a promotional image on ‘widespread’ at The Sun – an allegation Twitter – accompanied by the hashtag which, he said, had been ‘vigorously not symbols’ #blacksabbath – featuring the slogan admitted to date’ by NGN. n Richard Burgon MP has been “We sold our soul for rock ‘n’ tröll”, NGN said it had offered sincere awarded £30,000 in a libel victory with the first letters of “sold” and “soul” apologies ‘for the distress caused by the against The Sun, which published an rendered in a lightning-bolt font. invasion of privacy’. article alleging he had joined a band When Newton Dunn contacted ‘News Group Newspapers that he knew took great pleasure in the Labour party for comment, he was has settled cases relating using Nazi symbols. referred to the 1975 Black Sabbath to voicemail intercep- Burgon, the Shadow compilation album We Sold Our Soul tion at the News of This is the Secretary of State for Rock ‘n’ Roll. the World which for Justice and MP The print version of the article said closed in 2011,’ fourth claim in for Leeds East, the use of the font similar to the SS said a company the past 18 months was handed the logo ‘takes off Black Sabbath’s 1975 spokesman. NGN damages after a album We Sold Our Soul for Rock ‘n’ Roll maintained, that has settled very three-day High which has the same fonts’. The online however, that it close to the start Court trial. The version of the article, however, made made ‘no admis- of the trial judge also granted no reference to Black Sabbath. sion of liability’ with Burgon an injunction The judge found that the image regards to ‘any allega- to stop further publication was based on the cover of the Black tions of illegal information of the allegation. Sabbath album. gathering at the Sun newspaper’. The article, written by The Sun’s Having determined that the article 4 | zoom-in Spring 2019 Facebook pays £3m to settle Martin Lewis scam ad claim n Facebook has agreed to pay £3m to Citizens Advice to deliver a new UK Scams Action Project as part of its settlement of a libel claim against it by personal finance guru Martin Lewis. The claim by the consumer affairs campaigner and founder of Money- SavingExpert.com was brought over the publication of what Lewis said were over 50 adverts that appeared on Facebook in this country. He alleged that the adverts were often for scams and had big pictures of him, as well as featuring his name, alongside false promises or endorsements. Some adverts linked to related fake articles. Shutterstock.com The majority of the adverts were for get-rich-quick schemes, which Lewis said were fronts for binary trading Drop of Light / firms based outside the EU. JOHN: SETTLED The legal claim was a ground- bore the meaning that Burgon knew about the source of the symbols in the breaking approach to an issue that that the band took pleasure in using online article. persists across a number of internet Nazi symbols, and that this was If Newton Dunn wanted the platforms. defamatory at common law and had protection of the defence he was not, As part of the settlement, in caused serious harm to Burgon’s repu- the judge found, entitled to ignore the addition to the donation to Citizens tation, the judge considered the news- information about the source of the ‘S’ Advice, Facebook has said that it will paper’s defences.