Michael Tugendhat

Sir Michael George Tugendhat (born 21 October 1944)

Education Tugendhat attended Ampleforth College and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, where he studied philosophy and classics. However, the case went to trial in 2011, at which point Tugendhat ruled in favour of Thornton. During trial it was established that Barber had lied in her evidence to the court about the extent of her knowledge of the accusations published in her book review. It emerged that Barber was fully aware that some of the accusations in her review were completely false, a fact which resulted in Tugendhat awarding Thornton £15,000 in malicious falsehood damages. This was a notable award as it appears to have been the first award of general damages for malicious falsehood. In the same judgment, Tugendhat went on to rule that other accusations in Barber's review were defamatory of Thornton, and awarded the latter a further £50,000 in damages.

In November 2012, Tugendhat presided over an attempt by the Metropolitan Police to force claims against them relating to relationships between undercover police officers and unsuspecting women to be held in secret. (See National Public Order Intelligence Unit, Mark Kennedy (police officer), Bob Lambert.) He ruled in January 2013 that parts of these contentious cases (relating to the Human Rights Act) should be heard in a secret Investigatory Powers Tribunal, from which claimants are themselves excluded, and which to which there is no power of appeal. However, he ruled against the Metropolitan Police in relation to parts of the cases brought under common law, which will be held in the High Court rather than in secret.

In May 2013, Tugendhat passed judgement in the landmark libel case McAlpine v Bercow, in which a one-line tweet by Sally Bercow was judged defamatory and led to an out-of-court settlement.

Honours Tugendhat was appointed Knight Bachelor on 20 May 2003 upon his appointment to the High Court. His investiture ceremony took place at Buckingham Palace on 25 June 2003 where he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II.