Defamatory internet publications and the need for evidence

In a recent Singapore High Court case, Qingdao Bohai Construction Group and others v Goh Teck Beng and another (2016), the plaintiffs failed to prove defamation mainly because they could not establish that the defendants had published allegedly defamatory online articles.

While restating the trite legal principles of defamation in Singapore, this case highlights the importance of obtaining electronic evidence to identify defendants, and to show that third parties have downloaded and read such defamatory online publications.

The five plaintiffs, three companies and two senior executives, sued two Singaporean defendants for defamation and conspiracy. The plaintiffs claimed that the two defendants – directors of HuanYu (Qingdao) Development, which was then involved in multiple legal disputes with the Qingjian Group’s construction projects in China – had a motive to take revenge on the Qingjian Group of companies.