The man, named in the lawsuit as “Mr D”, was made redundant by his employers SA Sage France for use of the telephone and internet for non-work related purposes as well as displaying a lack of respect for his boss.
Three days later, Mr D created a web site which contained negative remarks about the managers at SA Sage France. He then e-mailed his ex-colleagues at the company inviting them to view the site.
Under French law, action which causes damage to a third party must be repaired, provided a link between the damage suffered and the actual action can be established. The judge ruled that Mr D’s actions were damaging, by inviting his ex-colleagues to view his site, the content of which was “clearly defamatory.”
Mr D was ordered to pay symbolic compensation of one franc (ten pence) and to place notice of the decision on his web site and in two different newspapers of the company’s choice.