The Supreme Court in Suva has dismissed an appeal in a defamation case filed by a landlord. The court has ordered the landlord, Dr. Uma Sharma, a dentist, to pay his former tenant, Dr. Isireli Biumaitotoya, a Nadi-based doctor known as Leighly Darling, $10,000. The ruling was made on June 28 by Acting Chief Justice Salesi Temo, Justice Lowell Goddard, and Justice William Young.
Dr. Sharma had sued Dr. Biumaitotoya for defamation in 2012, and in 2019, the High Court in Lautoka ordered Dr. Biumaitotoya to pay Dr. Sharma $70,000 in damages. Dr. Biumaitotoya’s lawyer, Anil Singh, appealed this decision at the Court of Appeal in Suva, which overturned the High Court’s ruling. Dr. Sharma then sought leave to appeal and an extension of time to do so before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of Dr. Biumaitotoya, dismissing Dr. Sharma’s appeal and ordering the payment to Dr. Biumaitotoya. This case revolved around allegations that Dr. Biumaitotoya had defamed Dr. Sharma in an email sent to 144 doctors, suggesting that the property might go into receivership and mentioning Dr. Sharma’s marital problems.
The initial High Court ruling ordered Dr. Biumaitotoya to pay $70,000 in damages and $29,400 in interest. Additionally, there were claims of unpaid rent filed by Dr. Sharma against Dr. Biumaitotoya.
The Court of Appeal examined the contents of the email and found that it was not defamatory. Justice Temo disagreed with the High Court’s judgment, noting that the trial should have considered the truth of the statements made by Dr. Biumaitotoya. Justice Temo also noted that much of Dr. Sharma’s cross-examination responses were evasive and confirmed instances of harassment against Dr. Biumaitotoya.
The evidence presented included allegations that Dr. Sharma had a fish shop opened next to Dr. Biumaitotoya’s surgery, welded the surgery’s backdoor shut, and placed a steel barricade—all actions interpreted as harassment.
Given Dr. Sharma’s conduct and failure to properly address his marital issues while managing his landlord-tenant relationship, the court sided with Dr. Biumaitotoya. Consequently, Dr. Sharma was ordered to pay costs to Dr. Biumaitotoya.