✏️ Sample Solved Problem (IRAC Method) — KSLU Bns Notes

✏️ Sample Solved Problem (IRAC Method)

Problem: A says, “I do not believe what Z asserted at the trial, because I know him to be a man without veracity.” Has A defamed Z?

I — Issue

Whether A’s statement imputing that Z lacks truthfulness is defamation, or is protected by an exception.

R — Rule

Section 356 (defamation) punishes an imputation that harms reputation; but the exceptions protect, among other things, an imputation/opinion made in good faith respecting the conduct of a witness in a case and a person’s character so far as it appears in that conduct.

A — Analysis

A’s words plainly impute that Z lacks truthfulness, which lowers his reputation — so the statement is prima facie defamatory, and the decoy is to stop there and convict. But the statement is also, in form, an opinion on the credibility of a witness — precisely the territory the exceptions guard. The decisive question is therefore good faith: if A genuinely and in good faith expressed his opinion of Z’s conduct as a witness (a matter on which fair comment is protected), the statement is not an offence; but if the imputation was made maliciously, without good faith, merely to harm Z’s reputation under the guise of commenting on his evidence, it is defamation. The presence or absence of good faith — not the sting of the words alone — settles liability.

C — Conclusion

It depends on A’s good faith. If A’s comment on Z’s veracity as a witness was made honestly and in good faith, it falls within the exception and is not defamation; if it was a malicious imputation dressed up as comment, A is liable under S.356.

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