Former Mayor of Castries Peterson Francis says he feels “finally” vindicated after the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court’s Court of Appeal upheld a ruling in his favour in a defamation case.
“This gives me confidence that the law works,” Francis told St Lucia Times. “You cannot just say things about someone that are not true, cause injury to their personal character and want to get away with it.”
The Court of Appeal last week dismissed an appeal brought by Christopher Hunt, affirming an earlier judgment in favour of Francis.
The case arose from a pre-recorded edition of the Choice TV talk show Politically Incorrect, aired on February 2, 2018. During the programme, the host and a caller made several allegations about Francis, who was then Mayor of Castries and had expressed interest in contesting the next general election.
Francis filed a claim on February 11, 2025, contending that the words used during the programme meant, or were understood to mean, that he was a thief, was corrupt, had a history of corrupt deeds associated with holding public office and that his tenure as mayor was characterised by corruption.
Hunt, the defendant in the original proceedings, denied the allegations but did not set out in his defence the words he said had been spoken during the programme. Francis submitted a recording of the broadcast as evidence, which the court accepted as authentic.
In its judgment, the court noted that the allegations were “grave” and “not minor slights”. It said that, if believed, they would “undermine public confidence” in Francis’s fitness to hold public office.
The judge found that the words complained of were defamatory and ordered Hunt to pay Francis $35 000 in general damages, together with pre-judgment interest at three per cent per annum from the date the claim was filed and post-judgment interest at six per cent per annum until the judgment debt was paid. Hunt was also ordered to pay Francis’s legal costs on the prescribed scale.
Dissatisfied with the judgment, Hunt appealed and subsequently filed an amended notice of appeal on November 7, 2025, setting out eight grounds of appeal.
The Court of Appeal considered two main issues: whether the judge was correct in finding that Francis had satisfied the requirements of Section 1(1) of the Defamation Act 2013, and whether the judge had failed to take into account an apology Hunt published when assessing serious harm and determining damages.
The appeal was dismissed. The Court of Appeal upheld the award of general damages, the interest payments and the order for legal costs. It also ordered that Francis receive his costs of the appeal, to be assessed by a judge or master of the High Court if the parties could not agree on the amount within 30 days of the judgment.
“Too often people’s names are thrown into all sorts of allegations of corruption, whether publicly or on talk shows,” Francis told St Lucia Times. “But how many people are confident that they can stand on the law of defamation and proceed with a case?
“In my case, I took my time, and I did what I had to do, and the judge has ruled in my favour.”
Reflecting on his time as Mayor of Castries, Francis said his work had always been in the country’s interest rather than for personal gain.
“So no matter how they tried to pin allegations of corruption on me, I stood on the side of what was right. I hope that this may give other people who find themselves in my position [the courage] to do what they too believe is right,” he said.
