Jeya gets QC Gray to argue his appeal
Straits Times. Jan 16, 1998
WORKERS' Party chief J.B. Jeyaretnam yesterday applied successfully
to the High Court for Queen's Counsel Charles Gray to act for him in his
appeal against a high court judgment for defaming
Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong.
Mr Jeyaretnam is appealing against a high court order to pay $20,000 in damages to PM Goh for defaming him at an election rally on Jan 1 last year. He was also ordered to pay 60 per cent of Mr Goh's costs.
Yesterday, he told Chief Justice Yong Pung How that QC George Carman, who had represented him before in the hearings, was not available on the hearing dates scheduled.
The CJ allowed the application after Mr Ashok Kumar, the lawyer for PM Goh, State Counsel Samantha Tan Suat Choo for the Attorney General's Chambers and Mr Tan Woon Tiang for the Law Society confirmed they had no objections.
QC Gray had represented Mr Tang Liang Hong, Mr Jeyaretnam's running mate in last year's general election, in the defamation suits brought against Mr Tang by 11 People's Action Party leaders for comments he made about them during the election campaign.
The PM sued Mr Jeyaretnam for telling an election rally on Jan 1 last year that Mr Tang had placed before him two police reports that he had made against Mr Goh and his team.
Justice S. Rajendran ruled last September that these words defamed the PM as they implied that he could be investigated for doing something which might be wrong. PM Goh is also appealing against the judgment. Hearing for both appeals have been fixed to start on April 27.