The Sensintrovert: Malik Imtiaz As Jeff Ooi's Counsel; 'Employees and Agents' Restrained From Republishing Posts

From The Star:

NSTP gets injunction to remove blog postings

By SHAILA KOSHY and ROYCE CHEAH

KUALA LUMPUR: The New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd (NSTP) has obtained an exparte injunction ordering blogger Jeff Ooi to remove allegedly defamatory postings in relation to it on his blog Screenshots.

The injunction, granted by High Court Justice Abdul Malik Ishak on Jan 11, states that the said 13 postings from Feb 16 to Dec 4, 2006, have to be removed from his blog by Jan 17.

The injunction also restrains Ooi, whether by himself, or through his employees and agents from republishing the said postings in his blogs or the world wide web, until the disposal of the company’s defamation suit against him.

The NSTP, however, failed to get a similar exparte injunction against blogger Ahirudin Attan for allegedly defamatory postings on his blog Rocky’s Bru.

High Court Justice Hishamuddin Yunus, who heard the application, would hear an interparte application for the injunction on Jan 25.

Ahirudin was instead served a letter dated Jan 11 giving notice that a libel suit had been filed against him and that an application for interim relief would be made on Jan 25.

He was also served the summons in chambers that included a list of 48 allegedly defamatory postings from June 8 to Oct 27, last year.

The suit against Ooi was filed by NSTP and its deputy chairman Datuk Kalimullah Masheerul Hassan, Group Editor in Chief Datuk Hishamuddin Aun and former Group Editor Brenden John a/l John Pereira.

The same plaintiffs have sued Ahirudin, with NSTP chief executive officer Datuk Syed Faisal Syed A. R. Albar as an additional plaintiff.

Malik Imtiaz Sarwar, counsel for Ooi, said: “My client now has the option of setting aside the injunction or letting it lapse naturally (an exparte injunction is only valid for 21 days from the date it is granted).”

The court has fixed Jan 30 for an interparte hearing of the application for an injunction against Ooi.

Since this is a law case, let us look at the legal definitions for 'employee' and 'agent':

employee n. a person who is hired for a wage, salary, fee or payment to perform work for an employer. This is important to determine if one is acting as employee when injured (for worker's compensation) or when he/she causes damage to another, thereby making the employer liable for damages to the injured party.

agent n. a person who is authorized to act for another (the agent's principal) through employment, by contract or apparent authority. The importance is that the agent can bind the principal by contract or create liability if he/she causes injury while in the scope of the agency. Who is in agent and what is his/her authority or often difficult and crucial factual issues.