Dana settles defamation case against Irish Times, Meta

Singer, Dana Rosemary Scallon has settled the final defamation case she took arising from media coverage of the trial of her brother John Brown, who was acquitted in 2014 of sexual abuse charges dating back to the 1970s.

Ms Scallon successfully sued a number of media organisations over headlines and reports relating to false claims about her evidence in the case.

In 2021 she received a six figure sum from the Sunday World newspaper in settlement of her action against them.

She had previously received a similar sum in the High Court in Belfast in another action against the newspaper.

Today's action was against the Irish Times newspaper as well as against Meta for comments published underneath a Facebook post from the Irish Times.

Ms Scallon’s Senior Counsel, Helen Callanan told Judge Tony O’Connor that the matter had been settled and could be struck out.

She said the settlement had been achieved with Senior Counsel, Hugh Mohan as mediator.

Speaking outside court, Ms Scallon said today’s settlement brought to a close 14 years of defamation actions.

She said it was a tremendous relief although she felt the cases could have been dealt with "much quicker".

Dana said anyone could be a victim of defamation.

She said false headlines and the accompanying comments on social media traversed the world in seconds and once up, they were almost impossible to remove or to correct.

Ms Scallon said people’s good names, reputations and careers could be irretrievably damaged and she said, friends like singer, Cliff Richard, Radio DJ Paul Gambaccini, Louis Walsh and former TD, Pat Carey all had to go the legal route to get justice.

Ms Scallon said she believed there was an agenda behind some of the comments that had been made online, because of her religious beliefs.

She said it had a devastating effect on her as an individual and on family members and it had been a very arduous number of years.

But she said she wanted to thank friends like Cliff Richard and Louis Walsh for being so supportive and the people throughout the country who had given her strength and a sense of hope.

She also thanked her family and friends and solicitors Kevin Winters and Martin Durcan.

She said she hoped today would be the last time she would ever have to be in the four courts.