Nine loses defamation case over ACA story

Nine must pay a Sydney barrister $150,000 in damages after losing a defamation case in which A Current Affair portrayed her as a “thief.”

Gina Edwards sued the broadcaster and journalist Steve Marshall over two 2021 ACA broadcasts and online articles, which she said incorrectly painted her as “a thief” who stole the dog named Oscar.

She had been in a legal fight for ownership of Oscar with a former friend, Mark Gillespie, and her counsel Sue Chrysanthou SC previously told the Federal Court the stories repeated lies about the situation.

The case alleged multiple defamatory imputations, or meanings, were conveyed by the material, including that Ms Edwards “stole” Oscar “for her own financial benefit”, had “deliberately delayed” a court case about Oscar and “exploited Oscar for her own financial benefit”.

Justice Michael Wigney found the ACA broadcasts were “sensationalist, if not hyperbolic” and portrayed Ms Edwards in a most unfavourable light.

The $150,000 in damages includes aggravated damages.

Source: ABC