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27/05/2021
Dr Christian Jessen Ordered To Pay Arlene Foster £125,000 For False Tweet
Arlene Foster is to receive £125,000 from Dr Christian Jessen after he posted a defamatory tweet which made unfounded claims that she was having an extramarital affair.
Mr Justice McAlinden accepted that the false tweet by the celebrity doctor had cut Mrs Foster "to the core" at the High Court in Belfast.
The tweet remained online until Dr Jessen deleted it on January 7 2020.
Delivering judgment, Mr Justice McAlinden said: "To state that a woman married for 25-and-a-half years and a mother of three children, who is a committed Christian and who is recognised as such, and who has publicly made statements extolling the importance and sanctity of marriage, who also happens to be the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party and a holder of the office of First Minister of Northern Ireland, was an adulterer, a hypocrite and a homophobe is a most serious libel and is grossly defamatory.
"It is an outrageous libel concerning an individual of considerable standing, attacking her integrity at the most fundamental level, and it involves the trashing in a very public fashion of the relationship that Mrs Foster holds dearest in her life.
"It affected core aspects of her life, namely her relationship with her husband, her deep Christian faith, it called into question her fitness and suitability to occupy the office of First Minister at a time when delicate negotiations were continuing on the re-establishment of the Northern Ireland Executive.
"In short, I consider that it was an outrageously bad libel."
Mr Justice McAlinden ordered Dr Jessen to pay damages of £125,000 and Mrs Foster's legal costs.
Mr Justice McAlinden accepted that the false tweet by the celebrity doctor had cut Mrs Foster "to the core" at the High Court in Belfast.
The tweet remained online until Dr Jessen deleted it on January 7 2020.
Delivering judgment, Mr Justice McAlinden said: "To state that a woman married for 25-and-a-half years and a mother of three children, who is a committed Christian and who is recognised as such, and who has publicly made statements extolling the importance and sanctity of marriage, who also happens to be the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party and a holder of the office of First Minister of Northern Ireland, was an adulterer, a hypocrite and a homophobe is a most serious libel and is grossly defamatory.
"It is an outrageous libel concerning an individual of considerable standing, attacking her integrity at the most fundamental level, and it involves the trashing in a very public fashion of the relationship that Mrs Foster holds dearest in her life.
"It affected core aspects of her life, namely her relationship with her husband, her deep Christian faith, it called into question her fitness and suitability to occupy the office of First Minister at a time when delicate negotiations were continuing on the re-establishment of the Northern Ireland Executive.
"In short, I consider that it was an outrageously bad libel."
Mr Justice McAlinden ordered Dr Jessen to pay damages of £125,000 and Mrs Foster's legal costs.
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Northern Ireland WeatherToday:There will be a mixture of bright intervals and a few showers. Best of the sunny spells will be near the North Coast. Feeling on the cool side. Maximum temperature 10 °C.Tonight:Showers will gradually die out during the evening. A cold night with long clear spells leading to a touch of frost in places. Minimum temperature 0 °C.
