World Sport Group v Dorsey James Michael: Pre-Action Interrogatories & Defamation
In World Sport Group Pte Ltd v Dorsey James Michael, the Singapore High Court heard an appeal regarding an order for pre-action discovery and interrogatories. World Sport Group initiated proceedings against Dorsey James Michael to obtain pre-action discovery and administer pre-action interrogatories related to the publication of an audit report and confidential information about a Master Rights Agreement (MRA). The court allowed the appeal in part, ordering the defendant to answer specific interrogatories related to his sources and their connection to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the MRA.
1. Case Overview
1.1 Court
High Court1.2 Outcome
Appeal allowed in part. The defendant had to answer interrogatories nos 1, 2(a), 2(b), 2(c), 6 and 6.1.
1.3 Case Type
Civil
1.4 Judgment Type
Grounds of Decision
1.5 Jurisdiction
Singapore
1.6 Description
Singapore High Court allows pre-action interrogatories against blogger Dorsey James Michael to identify sources who leaked confidential information.
1.7 Decision Date
2. Parties and Outcomes
| Party Name | Role | Type | Outcome | Outcome Type | Counsels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| World Sport Group Pte Ltd | Plaintiff | Corporation | Partial Success | Partial | Deborah Evaline Barker, Hewage Ushan Saminda Premaratne |
| Dorsey James Michael | Defendant | Individual | Appeal Allowed in Part | Partial | N Sreenivasan, Sujatha Selvakumar |
3. Judges
| Judge Name | Title | Delivered Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Judith Prakash | Judge | Yes |
4. Counsels
| Counsel Name | Organization |
|---|---|
| Deborah Evaline Barker | KhattarWong LLP |
| Hewage Ushan Saminda Premaratne | KhattarWong LLP |
| N Sreenivasan | Straits Law Practice LLC |
| Sujatha Selvakumar | Straits Law Practice LLC |
4. Facts
- World Sport Group had a contractual relationship with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) since 1993.
- A Master Rights Agreement (MRA) was novated to World Sport Group in 2010, containing a confidentiality clause.
- Dorsey James Michael published articles and posts referencing an audit report containing information about the MRA.
- The audit report allegedly contained defamatory remarks about World Sport Group.
- World Sport Group sought pre-action discovery and interrogatories to identify sources who leaked the report and MRA information.
- The defendant admitted that he had obtained a copy of the Report.
- The AFC denied disclosing the Report to anyone but FIFA.
5. Formal Citations
- World Sport Group Pte Ltd v Dorsey James Michael, Originating Summons No 839 of 2012 (Registrar's Appeal No 404 of 2012), [2013] SGHC 78
6. Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| World Sport Group Pte Ltd incorporated in Singapore | |
| AFC and associate of plaintiff entered into Master Rights Agreement | |
| Master Rights Agreement novated to the plaintiff | |
| Mohamed Bin Hammam banned from FIFA | |
| PriceWaterhouseCoopers Advisory Service Sdn Bhd issued audit report | |
| Defendant published article "Bin Hammam Audit Opens Pandora’s Box – Analysis" | |
| Defendant published article "UAE and UAE hire fired AFC Bin Hammam Associates – Analysis" | |
| Defendant published article "FIFA’s suspension of Bin Hammam buys time" | |
| Defendant published post "FIFA investigates: World Cup host Qatar in the hot seat" on his blog | |
| Defendant published article "FIFA investigates: World Cup host Qatar in the hot seat" | |
| Defendant published post "AFC reports stolen Bin Hammam payment documents to police" on his blog | |
| Defendant published post "World Sport Group sues journalist in bid to squash reporting on Bin Hammam" on his blog | |
| Defendant published post "Iran accused WSG of overpricing in breach of international rules" on his blog | |
| Originating Summons No 839 of 2012 initiated | |
| Decision Date |
7. Legal Issues
- Pre-action Interrogatories
- Outcome: The court allowed the defendant to be interrogated on specific questions.
- Category: Procedural
- Sub-Issues:
- Relevance of interrogatories
- Necessity of interrogatories
- Identification of possible parties
- Defamation
- Outcome: The court found that the defendant's article contained statements that were, prima facie, defamatory of the plaintiff.
- Category: Substantive
- Sub-Issues:
- Publication of defamatory statements
- Fair comment defense
- Breach of Confidence
- Outcome: The court found that the plaintiff had a possible cause of action in breach of confidence against sources who provided information about the MRA to the defendant.
- Category: Substantive
- Sub-Issues:
- Confidentiality clause in MRA
- Unauthorized disclosure of confidential information
8. Remedies Sought
- Discovery of documents
- Leave to serve pre-action interrogatories
9. Cause of Actions
- Defamation
- Breach of Confidence
10. Practice Areas
- Commercial Litigation
- Media Law
11. Industries
- Sports
- Media
12. Cited Cases
| Case Name | Court | Affirmed | Citation | Jurisdiction | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norwich Pharmacal Co v Customs and Excise Commissioners | N/A | Yes | [1974] AC 133 | N/A | Cited for the principle that a claimant may seek information to identify a potentially liable person. |
| British Steel Corp v Granada Television Ltd | House of Lords | Yes | [1980] 3 WLR 774 | England | Cited for the principle of balancing interests when ordering disclosure of a journalist's source. |
| Richland Logistics Services Pte Ltd v Biforst Singapore Pte Ltd | High Court | Yes | [2006] SGHC 137 | Singapore | Cited for the principle that interrogatories should be relevant and necessary for disposing fairly of the cause or matter or for saving costs. |
| KLW Holdings Ltd v Singapore Press Holdings Ltd | N/A | Yes | [2002] 2 SLR(R) 477 | Singapore | Cited for the holding that there is no newspaper rule in Singapore protecting journalists' sources. |
| Tullett Prebon (Singapore) Ltd and others v Spring Mark Geoffrey and another | N/A | Yes | [2007] 3 SLR(R) 187 | Singapore | Cited for the principle of balancing interests in resolving cases requiring a reporter/journalist to disclose the identity of his source. |
| Bayerische Hypo- und Vereinsbank AG v Asia Pacific Breweries (Singapore) Pte Ltd and other applications | N/A | Yes | [2004] 4 SLR(R) 39 | Singapore | Cited for the court's duty to ensure pre-action discovery applications are not frivolous or speculative. |
| Ng Giok Oh v Sajjad Akhtar | N/A | Yes | [2003] 1 SLR(R) 375 | Singapore | Cited to emphasize that pre-action discovery is not for private snooping. |
13. Applicable Rules
| Rule Name |
|---|
| No applicable rules |
14. Applicable Statutes
| Statute Name | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|
| Rules of Court | Singapore |
| O 26A r 1 of the Rules of Court (Cap 322, R 5, 2006 Rev Ed) | Singapore |
15. Key Terms and Keywords
15.1 Key Terms
- Pre-action interrogatories
- Master Rights Agreement
- Asian Football Confederation
- Audit report
- Defamation
- Breach of confidence
- Confidentiality clause
- Sources
- Journalist
- Public interest
15.2 Keywords
- pre-action interrogatories
- defamation
- breach of confidence
- sports marketing
- media
- Dorsey James Michael
- World Sport Group
- Asian Football Confederation
16. Subjects
- Civil Procedure
- Defamation
- Confidentiality
- Sports Law
17. Areas of Law
- Civil Procedure
- Defamation Law
- Confidentiality
- Interrogatories