Sunday Business PostMichael McDowell SC was making closing arguments in Mr O’Brien’s action alleging he was defamed in articles published in the SBP on March 15th, 2015 over six pages.
Mr O’Brien had been “vicious” in some of his evidence towards journalist Tom Lyons and former SBP editor Ian Kehoe, and had attacked Mr Lyons in a “really disgraceful” way in relation to how the latter had written a separate article in theCounsel said the jury heard “false” evidence from Mr O’Brien concerning communications between him and the former owner of the SBP, Conor Killeen.
Mr McDowell also urged the jury to reject evidence from Mr O’Brien that being referred to as a developer is defamatory and that he is not a “developer”.Mr O’Brien had described a number of situations, including his purchase of a two-storey premises in Donnybrook with a view to building a 26-storey block of apartments, which he “brazenly” said did not make him a developer, counsel outlined.
The SBP articles named Mr O’Brien as among the 22 biggest borrowers from Irish banks in 2008 and their focus was a PwC report about the exposure of Ireland’s banks in 2008. The defendant, Post Publications Ltd, denies the words mean what he alleges, denies defamation and malicious publication, and has pleaded “fair and reasonable publication on a matter of public interest”.
Mr O’Brien was saying they were lying and included him to damage him and said things they knew were untrue about him, he said.