Murray Hunter ordered to pay RM50,000 in damages to MRCB over articles

 The Shah Alam High Court also awarded RM10,000 in costs to MRCB and granted an injunction against the blogger.

The court found blogger Murray Hunter failed to verify the information before publishing it and subsequently, had not corrected the articles. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA:

The Shah Alam High Court has ordered blogger Murray Hunter to pay RM50,000 in damages to Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd (MRCB) for conspiring with an activist to publish a series of articles against the company.

The articles were about the demolition and redevelopment of the Shah Alam Stadium.

In her ruling on Aug 18, judicial commissioner Shoba Rajah Dorai Rajah also awarded MRCB RM10,000 in costs and granted an injunction against Hunter, who failed to enter an appearance in MRCB’s suit.

In June, MRCB secured a consent judgment against the activist, Abdul Razak Ismail, after the parties reached a settlement.

Razak agreed to a permanent injunction restraining him from publishing or republishing the allegations that were the subject matter of the suit.

In her grounds of judgment, Shoba found that MRCB had established the four elements of the tort of conspiracy and proved its case against Hunter on a balance of probabilities.

The court found that the evidence showed Hunter and Razak had published and republished each other’s articles.

It also found that Hunter had failed to verify the information before publishing it and subsequently, had not corrected the articles.

The court accepted evidence given by two MRCB senior officers, which went unchallenged in Hunter’s absence.

The court further held that MRCB had suffered damage as a result of the impugned conduct and publications.

MRCB was represented by lawyer Selva Mookiah. - FMT