Freedom of Expression, Disclosure of Journalists' Sources and the European Court of Human Rights: Goodwin v United Kingdom
| Author | Susan Nash |
| DOI | 10.1177/136571279700100504 |
| Published date | 01 December 1997 |
| Date | 01 December 1997 |
| Subject Matter | Case Note |
ASE NOTE
Freedom
of
expression,
disclosure
of
journalists'
sources
and
the
European
Court
of
Human
Rights:
Goodwin
v
United
Kingdom
By
Susan
Nash
Principal
Lecturer,
University
of
Westminster
I n X Ltd v Morgan Grampian (Publishers) Ltd and Others1
the
House
of
Lords
upheld
an
order
requiring William Goodwin, a trainee journalist,
to
disclose
the
identity
of
a confidential source
on
the
ground
that
it
was
necessary
in
the
'interests
of
justice'. The order was granted primarily on the
ground
of
the
threat
of
severe financial damage to a computer software
company,
and
consequently to
the
livelihood
of
their
employees. Goodwin
refused to disclose his notes and was fined £5,000 for contempt
of
court.
Be
lodged
an
application
with
the
European Commission
of
Human Rights
claiming
that
the
order
amounted
to a violation
of
Article
10
of
the
European
Convention
on
Human Rights. It was declared admissible
and
the
case
was
referred to
the
European Court
of
Human Rights.2 Thus,
in
Goodwin v United
Kingdom3
the
Court was called upon to consider
whether
the
imposition
of
the
disclosure order violated
the
right to freedom
of
expression guaranteed
by
Article
10
of
the
Convention. This case involved consideration
of
the
scope of
the
immunity
against disclosure given to journalists
under
s.
10
of
the
Contempt
of
Court Act 1981. The applicant complained
there
was no
justification to
depart
from
the
fundamental principle
that
journalists'
confidential sources should be protected from disclosure. The House ofLords,
~91]AC1.
I :
!~~~hfs
note
the
European
Court
of
Human
Rights is referred to as
'the
Court'.
3 (1996)
22
EHRR
123.
410
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