Tavakoli v Imisides (No 4) [2019] NSWSC 717 concerned a claim by the plaintiff, a plastic surgeon, against the second defendant for defamation and injurious falsehood.
The imputations arose from a Google review that alleged that the plaintiff charged the first defendant for a buccal fat procedure that he did not perform; that the plaintiff acted improperly in relation to a buccal fat procedure for the first defendant; and the plaintiff acted incompetently in relation to a buccal fat procedure for the first defendant. Those allegations were shown to be untrue.
The plaintiff succeeded in his claim and damages (including aggravated damages) were assessed at $530,000.
The full text of orders made appeared in the judgment at [97]:
- The first defendant shall pay the plaintiff $530,000 as damages for the defamation published and referred to in these reasons for judgment as the first Google review;
- The first defendant shall pay the plaintiff’s costs of and incidental to the proceedings on an indemnity basis;
- Neither defendant shall create a website of or concerning the plaintiff;
- The first defendant shall not publish or allow to remain published her Google review, first published on or about 1 September 2017;
- Neither defendant shall publish, re-publish or allow to remain published any matter containing imputations in or to the effect of those contained in the Google review and prescribed in [40] of the Statement of Claim, filed in these proceedings on 15 September 2017, being:
- any allegation that the plaintiff charged the first defendant for a buccal fat procedure that he did not perform;
- any allegation that the plaintiff acted improperly in relation to a buccal fat procedure for the first defendant;
- any allegation that the plaintiff acted incompetently in relation to a buccal fat procedure for the first defendant;
- The first defendant shall pay to the plaintiff interest at 4% per annum on $530,000 from 1 September 2017 until the date of judgment and thereafter at the rate prescribed by the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW), r 36.7 for post-judgment interest;
- The first defendant shall pay to the plaintiff interest on the costs at the rate prescribed in the costs agreement between the plaintiff and his legal representatives or at the rate prescribed by the Uniform Civil Procedure Rules 2005 (NSW), r 36.7, for post-judgment interest, whichever is the lesser rate.