Naomi Campbell wins privacy case
Supermodel Naomi Campbell has won a groundbreaking privacy action in a British court against one of the country's biggest-selling daily newspapers.
But in a highly critical ruling, the judge said she had lied under oath and that he had felt obliged to consider her evidence "with caution."
The London-born model was not at the High Court in London for the ruling which also gave her £3,500 ($5,000) in damages.
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Campbell, 31, sued The Mirror for breach of confidence and/or unlawful invasion of privacy after it published a photograph of her leaving a Narcotics Anonymous meeting in London in February last year.
Mr Justice Michael Morland ruled that she had succeeded in establishing breach of confidentiality and breach of the UK's Data Protection Act.
Mirror editor Piers Morgan, speaking after the decision, said he believed the public had a right to know details of Campbell's private life. "I am quite happy to expose her," he said.
He said she had won "on a very small technical point of law," and the Mirror would consider appealing the against decision.
He said: "I think the whole thing is a complete joke... I was under the impression that we had exposed her as a drug addict, after she had repeatedly denied it, and that she had received treatment, and the judge said we can do that."
Asked whether he would appeal, Morgan said it was a possibility, but: "I'm bored with the whole thing.
"To be honest I wish the judge had ordered us never to write another story about Naomi Campbell, because the thought of having to write more stories about her drives me mad."
Campbell's lawyer Keith Schilling said his client was "delighted."
He said: "She is naturally delighted with the decision. The judge has found in her favour on all points.
"This is a landmark case -- it establishes that anyone in the public eye, whether through choice or inadvertently, is entitled to protection for their private lives."
The case is regarded as another step in the bid to bring in a privacy law in the UK.
Paul Gilbert, a media law expert, said the court's verdict may end the sensational headlines and stories that define the London tabloids.
He told CNN: "What you will have are celebrities particularly rushing off and obtaining injunctions as soon as they get any sort of whiff of a story about their private life that they don't want the public to know."
Campbell spent more than a day in the witness box in February. Morgan also gave evidence.
http://articles.cnn.com/2002-03-27/entertainment/england.campbell_1_privacy-case-london-supermodel-naomi-campbell?_s=PM:SHOWBIZ
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