Nationwide News has lost its appeal against the decision to award Geoffrey Rush nearly $2.9 million after a court found it had defamed the actor in two articles published in 2017.
In a decision handed down on Thursday, three Federal Court justices dismissed the appeal, which argued Justice Michael Wigney had erred in ruling Mr Rush had been defamed in two editions of The Daily Telegraph newspaper, published on November 30, 2017 and December 1, 2017, and a billboard poster.
Nationwide News, publishers of The Daily Telegraph, had also appealed against the award of $2,872,753.10 to Mr Rush, arguing that the figure was excessive.
The stories published in The Daily Telegraph aired allegations of inappropriate behaviour by Mr Rush towards King Lear co-star Erin Jean Norvill during a production in 2015-16.
Mr Rush, 68, denied the allegations and sued Nationwide News and journalist Jonathon Moran for damages and lost income, claiming he was unable to find work following the publication of the stories.
Nationwide News defended the lawsuit in court, arguing the allegations published in the articles were true.
Last April, Justice Wigney found the unsubstantiated articles painted Mr Rush – one of the country’s most famous actors – as a “pervert”, a ”sexual predator” and conveyed he engaged in “scandalously inappropriate” behaviour during the King Lear production.
He also found Ms Norvill to be an unreliable witness prone to “exaggeration and embellishment”.
During the trial, Ms Norvill alleged Mr Rush made groping gestures towards her and claimed he touched her breasts during one scene on stage.
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2020-07-02 00:25:42Z
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