The Court of Appeal has dismissed Ryanair’s appeal in defamation proceedings against Australian pilot Peter John Fleming, finding no evidence that anyone in Ireland accessed or downloaded the post at issue. It also concluded that, even if Irish courts had jurisdiction, the dispute belonged in Australia, where Fleming is domiciled.
The appeal concerned Ryanair’s claim over comments Fleming posted under a pseudonym on the Professional Pilots Rumour Network forum on 29 September 2012. The posts followed reports that four Ryanair aircraft diverted to Valencia after a thunderstorm in Madrid and declared fuel emergencies. Ryanair said Fleming’s comments were defamatory; he denied that they were.
Ryanair began proceedings after obtaining orders from Californian courts requiring the forum operator to identify Fleming. He agreed to remove the post and not reproduce it, but declined further undertakings sought by the airline. The High Court had extended the time for Ryanair to bring its claim and authorised service on Fleming in Australia. After entering a conditional appearance, Fleming applied to set aside the order authorising service outside Ireland.
In October 2015, the High Court set aside the service orders on forum conveniens grounds, reasoning that the connection with Ireland was tenuous and there was no evidence that litigating here would be more convenient or less costly. Ryanair appealed.
Giving judgment on 4 October 2016, Mr Justice Gerard Hogan rejected Ryanair’s argument that Fleming was barred from raising jurisdiction because he had not opposed the earlier extension-of-time application. The court said he was entitled to wait until the substantive proceedings were served before challenging the service order.
The Court of Appeal held that proof of publication to a third party in Ireland was necessary to establish the alleged tort here. Ryanair cited the forum’s size and contributors who identified themselves as being in Ireland, but the court said that did not show any of them had accessed Fleming’s post while in the State. It therefore found Irish jurisdiction had not been established.
The court also upheld the High Court’s forum conclusion as an independent basis for dismissing the appeal. Fleming lived in New South Wales and had no connections with Ireland; the forum was hosted in California, and the incidents discussed in the posts took place in Spain. The court said these connections did not make Ireland the natural forum. It did not decide Fleming’s separate argument about whether an Irish judgment could be enforced in Australia, saying that issue was unnecessary to address.