The High Court has refused an application by National College Ireland CLG, trading as N.C.I., to strike seven paragraphs and related particulars from Keith Maycock’s Statement of Claim in defamation proceedings.
In a ruling delivered on 16 May 2017, Mr Justice Bernard J. Barton said the interests of justice were best served by refusing the application. The challenged material was in paragraphs 4 and 5 and paragraphs 10 to 15 of the claim.
The college argued that the material was unnecessary, irrelevant and vexatious because it did not concern the plaintiff’s cause of action, which centred on an allegedly defamatory letter. It also submitted that the issues were already complex and that including extraneous matters could add to the jury’s task.
Mr Maycock opposed the application, arguing that the paragraphs gave the letter proper context. He also said their exclusion could prejudice him if the defence of qualified privilege applied, because he might then have to prove actual malice.
Justice Barton said the pleadings, particulars and replies showed that the complaint concerned the letter, rather than the matters challenged by the college. Separate personal injury proceedings concerning those matters had been instituted against the same defendants. The court was told Mr Maycock did not intend to refer to those proceedings; they would not be before the jury unless introduced by the defendants.
The judge considered it unlikely that the jury would be led to decide matters irrelevant to the defamation claim. He said leaving the paragraphs in place would not add unnecessary complexity and that placing the letter in context was more likely to help the jury reach a proper verdict.
The ruling addressed only the application to remove material from the pleadings. The court refused that application; the source does not report a decision on the underlying defamation claim.