Louis Walsh Settles £400k Libel Case Against Irish Sun
Louis Walshhas settled a €500,000 (£403,500) libel case against the Irish Sun newspaper.
The X Factor judge was wrongly accused of sexually assaulting 24-year old Leonard Watters in the toilets of a Dublin nightclub last year - with[uuid=f7c139d2-f0d2-40c3-a909-ae71bfb1f5dc] the man later apologising to Walsh[/uuid] and admitting his allegations were false.
Walsh later sued the Irish version of The Sun for aggravated and exemplary damages, after it published the headline: "Louis Probed Over 'Sex Attack' on Man in Loo" on 23rd June 2011.
Speaking after receiving damages from News Group Newspapers, the music mogul said in a statement today (28th November): "I am very satisfied with this morning’s total vindication for me, but I remain very angry at the treatment I received at the hands of The Sun.
"I have the utmost respect and time for most journalists with whom I have always enjoyed a good relationship on the basis that we have treated each other fairly.
"I was therefore absolutely gutted and traumatised that these allegations against me should have been published, particularly as I had made it clear at the time that there was not an iota of truth in them and that I was totally bewildered as to who could have made up this type of story."
He continued: "Although the perpetrator has since been convicted as a result of concocting the allegations, this didn’t stop the story being spread around the world, as a result of The Sun’s headlines.
"However, I’m nonetheless glad to have achieved this decisive and categoric outcome today, and I now just want to get on with my life."
The newspaper has since apologised to Louis, stating: "The Sun fully accepts that the alleged assault did not occur in the first place and Louis Walsh is entirely innocent of any such assault.
"The Sun unreservedly apologises to Louis Walsh for the distress caused to him as a result of our article."
