Finnish Broadcasting Company – Appeal in a defamation case dismissed by the Monegasque Supreme Court
We successfully advised the Finnish Broadcasting Company, Yleisradio Oy, and its Editor in Chief in a defamation case before all levels of the Monegasque judiciary. The case concerned four articles published by Yleisradio in 2022, two of which were in Finnish and two in English. The counterparty was of the opinion that the claims made in the articles violated his honour and brought defamation charges against Yleisradio and its Editor in Chief in Monegasque courts. In addition, he claimed damages totalling EUR 100,000 and demanded the removal of all allegedly defamatory content under penalty of a fine. We challenged the jurisdiction of the Monegasque courts in the matter, as the articles were not directed at a Monegasque audience and, contrary to what the counterparty claimed, jurisdiction could not be based solely on the fact that the articles were published in English on the internet where they were available for all and could be translated into French using a browser functionality. Furthermore, we presented comprehensive arguments stating that the facts presented in the articles were truthful, presented in good faith as required by Monegasque legislation, and based on thorough research. We also highlighted that the counterparty’s actions constituted so-called forum shopping, i.e. the desire to have the case heard in a court he believed would be most favourable to him. The claim was heard by all three levels of Monegasque courts, as the counterparty appealed the judgments of the lower courts. The courts of first and second instance had deemed that the Yleisradio articles in question were not directed at a Monegasque audience, and the Monegasque courts were therefore not competent to hear the case. The Supreme Court of Monaco (Cour de Révision) stated that there were no grounds to link the allegedly defamatory claims to the country. Even though it was possible to access the online articles from Monaco as well, this did not mean that the articles were published in Monaco. This being the case, the Supreme Court of Monaco deemed that the local courts did not have jurisdiction to rule on the case and dismissed the counterparty’s appeal against the Court of Appeal’s decision. The Supreme Court’s decision is fundamental in upholding the freedom of expression in Europe. The opposite outcome would have encouraged similar intimidation lawsuits in countries favourable to the plaintiff, with the purpose of restricting dialogue and silencing critical voices. The unpredictability of judicial power and the risk of extensive – and expensive – trials could create an atmosphere of fear and increase self-censorship of those exercising their freedom of expression, especially journalists, other media professionals and researchers. The decision also reinforces the principle that forum shopping is not allowed. The Supreme Court’s decision is final.
Case published 17.6.2025
