High Court Rejects Ben Roberts-Smith's Final Appeal Against Defamation Ruling
Australia's top court has dismissed Ben Roberts-Smith's final appeal against a defamation verdict that upheld allegations of war crimes.
The High Court of Australia on Thursday dismissed Ben Roberts-Smith's final bid to overturn a landmark defamation ruling that found allegations of war crimes against the former soldier to be substantially true.
The decision concludes a seven-year legal battle between the Victoria Cross recipient and several newspapers over reports that he had murdered four unarmed Afghan civilians during his Afghanistan deployment. In 2023, a federal court judge determined the claims were accurate, ordering Roberts-Smith to pay the media outlets' legal costs.
Roberts-Smith, who left the army in 2013, has never faced criminal charges. He maintained that any killings occurred during lawful combat operations or did not happen at all, and argued the coverage destroyed his reputation.
An iconic figure when the articles first appeared in 2018, Roberts-Smith was honoured with Australia's highest military award for gallantry in action against the Taliban. However, his extensive defamation case, dubbed by some as Australia's 'trial of the century', reportedly cost tens of millions of dollars and ultimately failed to restore his standing.
Following the civil judgment, the Australian War Memorial in Canberra added contextual panels to Roberts-Smith's Victoria Cross display, noting the defamation ruling and related allegations. The museum confirmed further adjustments after his appeal was rejected.
The High Court's refusal to hear Roberts-Smith's final appeal finalises one of Australia's most high-profile defamation cases, upholding findings of serious misconduct in Afghanistan.
This topic was reported by BBC News.
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