A court has dismissed claims that comments on a closed Facebook group questioning a doctor’s specialisations in obstetrics and gynaecology are defamatory.

The posts, Naged Megally claimed in a civil case decided last week, had been posted on the Facebook group Women for Women by founder and administrator Francesca Fenech Conti, on behalf of group members who wanted to remain anonymous.

These posts, among others, make reference to a previous case in which it was decided that Megally did not have the necessary qualifications to be considered a specialist.

In April of 2013, Times of Malta had reported on a constitutional case, in which the court had concluded that Megally could not be registered as a specialist in the medical council’s register because he had not completed the necessary training.

Megally also objected to a separate post by Fenech Conti, who posted her reaction to a letter she received from Megally’s lawyers on social media.

Among others she had urged Megally or his lawyer to send her a list of his medical qualifications and certificates showing he was a specialist in obstetrics and gynaecology.

She said she would apologise if it transpired that she had said anything misleading, and likewise, expected him to apologise had he misled anyone. 

The court noted that Fenech Conti was not claiming Megally was not a resident specialist, or that he was not qualified to use this title, but, if it transpired he was not accredited, she expected an apology to those he might have misled with his description of resident specialist.

“The defendant brought forward satisfactory proof that the plaintiff was calling himself ‘Obstetrician and Gynecologist’ and was listed as specialist in the gynaecology sector for his private practice at St James Hospital when he is not effectively listed in the register held by the Medical Council as a specialist in the sector, despite being employed as Resident Specialist (Obstetrics and Gynaecology) at Mater Dei, and therefore cannot use the title of specialist,” the magistrate added.

The judgment noted that while he is not listed as a specialist in the register, the court understood he could freely and legitimately use the title of specialist to describe his engagement at Mater Dei, however, not when it comes to private practice.

In the judgement, Magistrate Rachel Montebello referred to another judgment she handed on the same day in which she ordered a woman who had posted on the same Facebook group to pay Megally €800 over libellous claims of incompetence, racism and sexual harassment.

However, in the case of Fenech Conti, the court decided the comments were not defamatory.