Introduction

[1] This case is about a mans reputation. What is reputation? There is no precise concept or definition. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, reputation means "what is generally said or believed about a mans character or standing". But reputation is different from character in that a persons character is what he or she in fact is whereas a persons reputation is what other people think he or she is. Plato Films Ltd v. Speidel [1961] AC 1090 at p 1138 per Lord Denning. In theory therefore, an unrevealed scoundrel may actually have an excellent reputation.

[2] In any discussion of reputation, there is the customary or some say obligator