site.btaLev Ins Insurer Loses Libel Case against Mediapool E-zine

The Lev Ins insurer has just lost a libel case against e-zine Mediapool over a story about problems with the Green Card system in Bulgaria. The judgment, dated January 11, 2024, was published on the Sofia City Court (SCC) website on Friday. Lev Ins claimed unprecedented BGN 1 million in non-material damages from the news provider, arguing that the story at issue had publicly maligned it, had affected its good name, and had ruined its public reputation. The SCC judgment can be appealed within two weeks before the Sofia Appellate Court.

Mediapool has insisted all along that the story "Bulgaria Threatened again with Expulsion from Green Card System", written by Tsvetelina Sokolova and published of September 27, 2022, literally quoted or used a verbatim record of a Cabinet meeting on the issue.

The SCC held that the claim was unfounded and awarded BGN 40,000 in legal costs to the e-zine.  Mediapool Editor-in-Chief Stoyana Georgieva said that if they win a possible appeal, they would contribute the money to a fund that the Association of European Journalists - Bulgaria plans to set up to help journalists fight intimidation lawsuits in court.

Georgieva is quoted as saying on www.mediapool.bg that this outcome, albeit only at the lowest court, is an important victory for all media outlets and journalists in Bulgaria struggling for quality journalism. "First of all, it is a victory for the democratic right of people to be informed," she added. 

For his part, the e-zine's lawyer, Alexander Kashumov, described the decision as "a major victory which is a good sign for Bulgarian democracy and freedom of speech". "It is also a good sign that the judiciary can be relied upon, which is very important considering the long-standing lack of trust and the constant monitoring by the European Commission of the rule of law in Bulgaria," he added. "Of course, we don't know if the victory is final, but the judgment is very important for all Bulgarian journalists and civic activists and how they can speak freely and criticize the government. This is an important sign for Europe, as the case against Mediapool is one of the most serious SLAPP cases in the European context."

Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP) are lawsuits intended to censor, intimidate, and silence critics by burdening them with the cost of a legal defence until they abandon their criticism or opposition.

The lawyer is quoted as saying that he hopes this judgment would have a positive impact on a new SLAPP case, launched by the Kozloduy N-Plant against Natalia Stancheva, a former Kozloduy employee, claiming that she had abused her right to information. "It is sad that we have to represent news media and individuals who are sued for making public official information generated by public institutions. It does not speak well of the protection of the right to information in Bulgaria and the level of institutions. All this calls for revising the legislation providing protection against SLAPP cases, and the Justice Ministry has already promised to draft the relevant bill," Kashumov said, quoted on www.mediapool.bg.