The Bookseller.com

2nd December 2008

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Rushdie 'nails' lies in High Court

26.08.08 Philip Jones

Author Salman Rushdie has called for more claimants to use the Declaration of Falsity approach to settle libel claims after The Satanic Verses author won an apology from publishers John Blake, author Ron Evans and the ghostwriter Douglas Thompson over 11 counts of dishonesty in the yet to be published book On Her Majesty's Service.

Speaking outside the High Court today (26th August), Rushdie said: "I hope that maybe this device of the Declaration of Falsity is another way of pursuing these matters. Instead of going for the mega bucks you simply go to court for the important thing which is to establish what's true and what's not. I think it's a clearer and simpler way of dealing with this and I'm very pleased we've been able to use it in this way."

Mr Justice Teare made a Declaration of Falsity against Evans, Thompson, and John Blake Publishing after Rushdie became aware of the false claims from the Daily Mail serialisation. According to reports, John Blake Publishing has pulped 4,000 copies which were printed but never distributed after discovering that substantial parts of two chapters were untrue.

John Blake told The Bookseller that he would be publishing On Her Majesty's Service in "a couple of weeks" after making revisions to the text, and issuing what he described as a "grovelling apology" to Rushdie.

Rushdie added: "It was never my desire to seek any financial reward from this but simply to have it established that the truth is the truth and lies are lies—I'm happy to have nailed that."

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