Leo Sherlock apologises as part of copyright settlement

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

Leo Sherlock issued an apology as part of a settlement of a copyright infringement case involving his website, TheLiberal.ie.

CCC Nuacht solicitor Rossa McMahon said the settlement terms required Sherlock to publish an agreed apology as a news story at the top of the website’s main page. He said the proceedings had been adjourned to Ardee District Court for 11 September 2017 to implement the terms.

Sherlock apologised on behalf of TheLiberal.ie for publishing four articles between June 2015 and November 2016 that reproduced or adapted CCC Nuacht articles without a licence. The articles had since been deleted. He undertook that neither he nor the website would publish or adapt further CCC Nuacht copyright material without a licence.

He also apologised for the unauthorised use of photographs owned by Independent Newspapers (Ireland) Limited, undertook not to commit further copyright breaches and agreed to pay the company an undisclosed sum in damages and costs.

In the preamble to the apology, Sherlock said some young writers were unaware of the mechanics of the news industry and that stories and images were sometimes used without owners’ permission. He said this was not done maliciously.

McMahon said CCC Nuacht was considering its position and would make no further comment because the proceedings remained before the court.