Ben Gilroy seeks injunction over alleged defamation video

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Ben Gilroy and businessman Vincent Byrne brought defamation proceedings against Fiona O'Leary over a 13-minute YouTube video she posted on June 23. O'Leary denies that it defamed them. The proceedings were reported on 29 November 2018.

In a pretrial motion before Mr Justice Senan Allen, Gilroy sought an injunction requiring O'Leary to take down the video until the case was decided. He claimed it wrongly linked him to the use and promotion of Miracle Mineral Supplement. The court heard that O'Leary accepted he had not engaged in either activity.

O'Leary opposed the application, arguing that it breached her right to freedom of expression. She rejected Gilroy’s assertions.

In September, Mr Justice Tony O’Connor directed O'Leary either to remove the video or insert a statement at its start accepting that Gilroy was not engaged in the use or promotion of the supplement. O'Leary said she complied by inserting the required text; Gilroy said the video could still be seen on certain devices without it. The injunction hearing was continuing.