Businessman wins Facebook libel case

A businessman who had fake personal details “laid bare” on Facebook has been awarded £22,000 in damages at the High Court.

Mathew Firsht won a libel case – which is part of what the law calls “defamation”: the act of hurting someone’s reputation – against an old school friend, Grant Raphael.

Raphael created a profile on the social networking site falsely indicating Mr Firsht’s sexual orientation and political views.

He was ordered to pay costs after the judge ruled that Raphael's defence was "built on lies".

Raphael said that "strangers" who attended a party at his house sneaked off to a spare bedroom and created the profiles on his PC. However, this story was described by Deputy Judge Richard Parkes QC, as "utterly far-fetched".

The profiles created by Raphael about Mr Firsht were on Facebook for 16 days until they were taken down. The judge heard that the private information concerned Mr Firsht's whereabouts, activities, birthday and relationship status.

Raphael was also accused of creating a company profile and a group called " Has Mathew Firsht lied to you?".

Within this Raphael alleged that Mr Firsht owed substantial sums of money which he had repeatedly avoided paying by lying, and that he and his company were not to be trusted.

Mr Firsht accused Raphael of bearing a grudge against him and of creating the false Facebook entry with the aim of causing him anxiety and embarrassment.

He was awarded £15,000 for libel and £2,000 for breach of privacy to his company, and £5,000 for personal libel.

Those wishing to find out more about defamation can read our feature about how the law affects the way people use the internet.