Mr Justice Eady II

2 December 2009

In relation to privacy Mr Justice David Eady was accused last year of "moral and social nihilism" and arrogance by the Daily Mail, of all rags, and he has took the perhaps foolish step of fighting his corner, now in the press. He has been reported after making a rare speech to a conference earlier this year held by the human rights organisation Justice and legal publishers Sweet and Maxwell.

Eady's speech was made back in February but has only now come to light after being submitted to the Commons Culture Media and Sport select committee's investigation into press standards, libel and privacy.

Eady J in particular noted, and bemoaned, an increasing tendency for judges to become the target of anger from the media. His particular problems stem from a series of high-profile decisions as the high court's specialist judge against the press in so-called privacy law cases such as Max Mosely against the News of the World. I say so-called because no such regime exists in English law, and Eady J has been accused of single-handedly attempting to create one.

The media have nowhere to vent their frustrations other than through personal abuse of the particular judge who happens to have made the decision,

Eady J said.

It has become fashionable to label judges not as independent but rather as 'unaccountable', and as hostile to freedom of speech.

Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail has said of Eady J (in what surely involve at least some element of knowing irony) that it is frightening what :

one judge [but insert who you want] with a subjective and highly relativist moral sense can do ... with a stroke of his pen

Eady J argued the current rarity of privacy claims contested by the media was evidence that journalists had changed their ways. Complainants argue that is because the press are simply forced to settle. Read on for an opinion on the merits.

Tim Mount is a trainee solicitor at Lawdit, contactable at tim.mount@lawdit.co.uk