David Fasold - Plimer Case

Plimer Case

In 1997, Fasold was involved in an Australian case against a creationist named Allen Roberts who reproduced some of Fasold's artwork without permission. A co-plaintiff was Australian Humanist and skeptic Dr. Ian Plimer. Plimer sued Roberts's organization Ark Search, claiming that Roberts and Ark Search made false and misleading claims about the Durupinar site. Plimer argued that Robert's speech was not protected free speech, but instead he sued under the Fair Trading Act, claiming that Roberts was misleading the public. The case was promoted by the media around Australia and the world as a second Scopes Monkey Trial. Plimer's action failed, Judge Ron Sackville said "Courts should not attempt to provide a remedy for every false or misleading statement made in the course of public debate on matters of general interest." Judge Sackville accepted that Roberts had infringed Fasold's copyrights, but Fasold described the award of $2,500 Australian dollars in damages as "a slap in the face," pointing out that he had won more in two similar cases in the United States.