Feminist Campaigner awarded £45,000 for Twitter libel

Jean Hatchet, a feminist campaigner, had undertaken a series of charity bike rides to raise money for a domestic violence charity, Wearside Women in Need and to raise awareness of violence against women and girls: each ride was undertaken in the memory of an individual woman who had died as a consequence of domestic violence. She uses a pseudonym due to concerns for her safety arising from threats of violence made against her.

On 10 October 2018, Ms Hatchet was falsely accused on Twitter of dishonestly misappropriating charity funds and committing theft. Since then, she has been subjected to numerous unfounded attacks on her credibility.

After a trial of damages handed down on 28 June 2021, Ms Hatchet was awarded £45,000, including aggravated damages. In reaching this award, Senior Master Fontaine found that “it was not a trivial libel, it was an accusation of theft”. Although Ms Hatchet has “broad shoulders” and had weathered abuse for her stand on violence against women and her views as to gender identity (she has been vocal in her support for single sex spaces and in opposition to reforms to the Gender Recognition Act 2004), the allegation of stealing was of a different order. The court accepted evidence pointing to repetition of the defamatory sting as recently as late May 2021 and considered that the “percolation phenomenon… where scandalous stories published on the internet might spread far beyond their immediate publishees” was a highly relevant factor. The award was necessary to reflect these factors and provide vindication for the Ms Hatchet’s reputation, which in turn may also stem any reduction in support for the charities she raises funds for.  

Beth Grossman represented the Claimant , instructed by Hemingways Solicitors Limited.