Following the publication of topless photographs of the Duchess of Cambridge by a French celebrity magazine please see this comment from Duncan Lamont, Partner in the media team at Charles Russell LLP:
“One wonders what the approach of the UK tabloids will be when the pictures of the royal couple go viral and appear in other European publications. There was no justification to publish them first (the PCC Code is clear on this) but now that their privacy has been intruded into so publicly a different public interest argument can be raised-and it will be interesting to see if the copyright owner of the sneaky snaps is prepared to seek damages for the infringement of their rights by the inevitable unlicensed re-publication!
“But the Duchess will be advised that the once very strict privacy laws in France, similar to what the tabloids have achieved here in the UK courts, are being reined in by politicians and lawyers .
Also it is not quite a private house-the Chateau is rented out and there may be debate as to how truly private it was and whether the paparazzi was on a public thoroughfare-these issues can take years to resolve, So the court of public opinion may seem the best bet-but all celebrities must be worried about the dam of editorial restraint bursting. Readers crave such pictures.
“Put simply, VIPs may need to remain buttoned up again.”
