Bauer Media will appeal a recent court decision to award the actor, Rebel Wilson, a defamation payout of $4.56 million after its stable of glossy women’s magazines inferred Wilson was a serial liar.
Yesterday, in Victoria’s Court of Appeal the magazine publisher asked for an application for leave to appeal the payout which is the largest in Australian legal history.
Wilson has said she will donate any monies she does receive to charities and acting groups. Her original payout was $650,000 in general damages and $3.91 million in special damages, however, it appears that Bauer are only contesting the $650,000 which is has described as “manifestly excessive”.
In the application, seen by and reported on by Fairfax Media, Bauer claimed: “In consequence of the errors made by the trial judge, judgement was given against the applicants in the amount of $4,749,920.60, including damages in the nature of interest in the sum of $182,448.61, and the applicants have thereby suffered a substantial injustice.”
In early October, when Wilson heard Bauer would contest the decision, Wilson tweeted she was not surprised “considering their disgusting history”.
Wilson wrote: “‘I am disappointed that this now delays my plans to support Australian charities and Australians in the entertainment industry. Nevertheless if this is a chance to expose more of their disgraceful practices & present more evidence on damages, I welcome it.”
She also was unhappy that Bauer had hired PR firm Thrive to say “positive things about their appeal. All orchestrated and total rubbish”.
