A man described as famous is awaiting a High Court decision on whether two media organisations can publish sexual misconduct allegations against him, after he warned he would kill himself if they were made public.
The man, who cannot currently be identified, is seeking an injunction against Independent Television News (ITN), which produced news programmes for ITV, Channel 4, Good Morning Britain and Channel 5, and Guardian News and Media (GNM), publisher of The Guardian.
Allegations of abuse of power
On Monday (November 2), lawyers for the media organisations told the High Court in London that the allegations they want to report involve the man's alleged abuse of power and status to contact young women and try to engage in inappropriate and exploitative sexual activities.
The man, who is alleged to have had two previous suicide attempts, is seeking the injunction due to the risk that he would take his own life.
Judge Mr Justice Nicklin is set to give his decision on Tuesday (November 3). Sara Mansoori KC, for the unnamed man, said he denies the allegations of wrongdoing and that publication would have a potentially fatal impact.
Court arguments
She told the court: "The only reason they would not be fatal is because the claimant would be locked up and prevented from his desire to end his life."
The barrister said, in written submissions, that this was not a case of a person spuriously claiming mental health concerns due to them not wanting something to be published. Ms Mansoori noted that the claimant has no intention of returning to public life.
Gavin Millar KC, for ITN and GNM, told the court that the case risks dragging judges into assessing the causes of suicidal ideation, which are for professionals and not for a judge. He added: "The obligation falls on the hospital to keep him safe, and that's that."
Public interest argument
Mr Millar later stated: "Plainly the proposed publication would make a valuable contribution to a debate of public importance, about men using their power to be able to misconduct themselves against women in that area of society."
In written submissions, the barrister added that the allegations were gathered after a wide-ranging and rigorous investigation. He said that there was a strong public interest in publishing them.
According to Mr Millar, they intend to publish numerous allegations that the man had abused his status over the course of many years to try to engage in inappropriate and exploitative sexual activities with a large number of girls and young women.
Potential precedent
A decision will be made by Mr Justice Nicklin during a hearing at 2pm on Tuesday.
Media lawyer Alex Wilson, partner at RPC, said the decision may not be the end of the story, The Star reports.
Mr Wilson said: "This landmark case raises an extraordinary question about press freedom: can the right to life be used to prevent the publication of serious allegations in the public interest… The courts must always strike a careful balance between an individual's right to reputation and privacy, and the media and public's right to receive information, particularly where there is a clear public interest."
According to Mr Wilson, if the injunction was granted it's likely that it will be quite an exceptional precedent given the seemingly exceptional nature of the evidence.
He said: "There is a reasonable concern amongst the media that individuals could cite this decision, and the potential impact of a potential damaging article about them, to try and prevent publication.
"The judge hearing this application is incredibly experienced in media law and will be well aware of the potential precedent that the decision may set.
"But, given how novel this case is and how much is at stake, I wouldn't be surprised if the unsuccessful party seeks to appeal. I certainly wouldn't expect this decision to be the end of the story."
