The Supreme Court in Suva has dismissed an appeal in a defamation case filed by a landlord. The court has ordered the landlord, dentist Dr. Uma Sharma, to pay his former tenant, Nadi-based doctor Dr. Isireli Biumaitotoya, also known as Leighly Darling, $10,000.
Dr. Sharma had initially sued Dr. Biumaitotoya for defamation in 2012, with the High Court in Lautoka ruling in 2019 that Dr. Biumaitotoya should pay $70,000 to Dr. Sharma. However, Dr. Biumaitotoya’s solicitor, Anil Singh, successfully filed an appeal with the Court of Appeal in Suva, which was granted.
Dr. Sharma then sought leave to appeal and an extension of time to do so at the Supreme Court. However, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Dr. Biumaitotoya, dismissing Dr. Sharma’s appeal.
Background on the case reveals that Dr. Biumaitotoya was initially ordered by the High Court in Lautoka to pay Dr. Sharma $70,000 in general damages and $29,400 in interest due to defaming Dr. Sharma in an email in 2019. The email, sent to 144 doctors, mentioned that Dr. Sharma’s property might go into receivership and included details of Dr. Sharma’s marital issues, deterring them from renting the premises.
Justice Jude Nanayakkara initially ruled on the case in May 2019, ordering Dr. Biumaitotoya to pay $70,000 in general damages plus interest unless paid within 14 days. Dr. Sharma was also entitled to further interest and potentially additional claims under indemnity costs.
The Court of Appeal scrutinized the email and concluded it was neither defamatory nor false in its statements. Justice Salesi Temo explained that the judgment did not correctly consider the combined effect of the claims, particularly failing to address the truth of the statements made in the email. The appeal judgment should have closely examined the text and the meanings attributed to it.
Justice Temo expressed that previous judgments had not thoroughly analyzed whether the email content was defamatory. He also highlighted that Dr. Sharma’s conduct, including opening a fish shop next to Dr. Biumaitotoya’s surgery and other alleged harassments, painted him as a problematic landlord. Additionally, various odd incidents involving Dr. Sharma reinforced Dr. Biumaitotoya’s credibility.
Ultimately, the Supreme Court sided with Dr. Biumaitotoya, with Justice Temo noting that Dr. Sharma allowed personal issues to interfere with their professional relationship. The court dismissed the appeal and ordered Dr. Sharma to cover Dr. Biumaitotoya’s costs.