Libel Verdict Upheld in Delaware Court

A jury’s decision against The News Journal for its account of a doctor’s treatment of a former patient was recently upheld by the state Supreme Court in Delaware. The court found the determination of liability was supported by the facts presented to the jury.      However, the court reversed the jury’s award of $2.6 million and ordered a new trial on compensatory and punitive damages. According to the court, damage awards were based on expert testimony "that lacked an admissible foundation," and the jury was unfairly restricted by the judge’s decision that it could not consider the wealth of Gannett Co., the newspaper’s parent company, in determining punitive damages.      This is the latest action in a case that began in 1992 with a News Journal article about the medical crisis of Pamela Kane and her doctor, Margo Kanaga, who recommended a hysterectomy.      After another doctor solved Kane’s problems through other methods, Kane filed a complaint with the county medical society and approached a News Journal reporter about the story.      The story ran before the medical society made a decision and without comments from the doctor. The medical society later cleared Kanaga.      According to the court, The News Journal "evidenced journalistic irresponsibility" by not waiting for a decision by the medical board.      The court also held that the issue of whether the article was fact or opinion was a question that had to be answered by the jury.