Calvin Ayre’s Defamation Claim Against Reuters Hits Major Setback.

Ambassador Calvin Ayre

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​Calvin Ayre, a billionaire entrepreneur from Antigua, has faced a major setback in his defamation claim against Reuters, one of the world’s leading news agencies.

This came after the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court rejected his interlocutory appeals application.

The defamation claim was filed by Ayre on February 28, 2020, in connection with a 2017 article published on a Reuters website titled ‘Bitcoin’s creditor races to patent technology with gambling tycoon’.

Ayre alleged that the article contained defamatory statements about him and sought to hold Reuters accountable.

Ayre’s legal team initially sent the claim to Reuters UK via the court’s E-Litigation portal.

However, as the case progressed, it was revealed that Reuters UK was not the correct defendant.

Ayre then attempted to substitute Reuters USA as the correct defendant, but the court found that the claim form’s validity had expired.

The court also noted that the three-year limitation period for defamation claims had lapsed, and Ayre had not taken any other permissible step to put matters right or extend the continued validity of the claim form.

As a result, Ayre has been ordered to pay Reuters USA’s costs for appealing the court’s initial decision to dismiss the claim.

The judges rejected all four issues and eleven grounds of appeal presented by Ayre’s attorneys, emphasizing disagreement with the legal propositions put forth in the appeal.

This ruling marks a significant setback for Ayre in his pursuit of defamation remedies against Reuters.

Ayre had sought an injunction against further publication of the article, a ‘correction order’ under the Defamation Act 2015, and damages for defamation.

However, with the court’s latest ruling, it remains to be seen what the future holds for his claim against Reuters.