Daily Mail Editor Criticized For Comments About Judge, Privacy Decisions

A number of attorneys have criticized Daily Mail editor in chief Paul Dacre’s comments on Mr. Justice Eady’s privacy rulings, including Anthony Lester (Lord Lester of Herne Hill), a Member of Parliament, and a well known human rights lawyer, who said that Mr. Dacre was “completely wrong” to criticize the judge personally for his rulings, adding that the opinions were justified considering the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. Geoffrey Robertson, a well known human rights lawyer in Britain, said that journalists do not understand the Human Rights Act, passed in 1998, and consequently fail to understand cases decided under it. Many lawyers who commented on Mr. Dacre’s speech noted that privacy rights and free expression must be balanced under Britain’s legal doctrine. Lord Falconer, a former member of the cabinet, also spoke up in defense of the judge’s rulings when he appeared on the BBC Radio 4 “Today” program. Read more here.