Councillor seeks retrial in defamation case

Invercargill City councillor Karen Arnold is seeking a retrial in her defamation case against Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt and media company Stuff.

Arnold sued Shadbolt and Stuff over comments made by Shadbolt in four columns published in The Southland Times newspaper in 2014 and 2015.

She claimed several defamatory meanings could be drawn from the columns, which discussed her position on council matters, including the council’s trading company Holdco and a proposed ka¯ka¯po¯ display.

The jury, in an almost threeweek long trial in the High Court at Invercargill, disagreed.

Their verdict, delivered on March 16, was that some of the meanings alleged by Arnold were present in the columns, but none were defamatory.

Shadbolt and Stuff both heralded the decision as a victory for free speech.

‘‘It’s a landmark case and it’s also a defence not just of sincere conversation, but of satire, humour, being able to enjoy politics, which I’ve always tried to do,’’ Shadbolt said at the time.

Arnold, a former Southland Times journalist and unsuccessful Invercargill mayoral candidate, has now filed an application for a retrial.

The matter will be heard at the High Court at Wellington. It is understood May 23 has been set down as a provisional date, but this was subject to change.

If her bid is unsuccessful, the hearing will likely turn to the matter of costs for the original trial.