Awa v Independent News Auckland Ltd [1997] 3 NZLR 590 is a cited case in New Zealand regarding the defence of fair comment / honest opinion to a claim involving defamation [1]
| Awa v Independent News Auckland Ltd | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Court | Court of Appeal of New Zealand |
| Full case name | Awa v Independent News Auckland Ltd |
| Decided | 31 July 1997 |
| Citation | [1997] 3 NZLR 590 |
| Court membership | |
| Judges sitting | Richardson P, Gault J, Thomas J, Keith J, Blanchard J |
| Keywords | |
| negligence | |
Background
editIn the aftermath of the death of comedian Billy T. James, his uncle Awa took his body away from his Pakeha wife, in order to give him a customary Māori burial at his ancestral marae.
Auckland's Sunday News newspaper covered it with a quote referring to Awa as "Billy's 'body snatching' uncle".
Awa subsequently sued for defamation, which the newspaper claimed was "fair comment".
Held
editThe Court held it was fair comment.
References
edit- ^ McLay, Geoff (2003). Butterworths Student Companion Torts (4th ed.). LexisNexis. ISBN 0-408-71686-X.
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