Richards Butler's appeal victory last week against Victoria Beckham (left, with husband David) has clarified an issue in negligence and tort law that has troubled courts for centuries

Michael Skrein, media litigation partner at Richards Butler, was representing the McManus family, the owners of GT's Recollections who were suing Beckham after she announced that the shop's autographs of David were fakes. The appeal court considered whether the McManus case could rely on press coverage of the incident, which allegedly caused a significant drop in the shop's sales, as part of their damages claim. Skrein's claim that the slander does not have to be an exact reproduction, in this case in the Daily Mirror, for the press coverage to be included in the damages claim, was upheld.