Coalition Government: Bruno Lachaux

coalition government: The case was a major test of the current state of libel laws in England and Wales, which were changed by the coalition government following a campaign led by Liberal Democrat peers who wanted to end London's reputation as the libel capital of the world . Bruno Lachaux, a French aerospace engineer, sued multiple news outlets in 2014 after they reported on his lengthy divorce and custody battle with his ex-wife Afsana Lachaux a former UK civil servant who worked with the likes of Gordon Brown and David Blunkett, according to The Independent. The pair were living in the United Arab Emirates when their marriage broke down, prompting a series of legal cases in the Emirati courts, which resulted in Bruno Lachaux having custody of their child. However, the judgment was welcomed by free-speech campaign groups as it established claimants now have to prove serious harm to their reputations in order to bring a successful libel case. Articles then began appearing in British news outlets including the Huffington Post, the Independent and the Evening Standard, alleging Bruno Lachaux had been abusive towards his ex-wife, had confiscated their son's passport to stop him leaving the UAE, and had made false claims of child abduction. Last year, the Huffington Post apologised and agreed to pay substantial damages and costs, but the Independent and the Evening Standard decided to take their appeal all the way to the supreme court. He strongly denied the allegation and successfully sued the news outlets for defamation in the English courts, with judges finding in his favour on multiple occasions. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.