--- description: The Harry Potter author will be donating some of the substantial damages to charity title: J.K. Rowling Wins Court Battle Over British Tabloid's False Claims image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf8abc7ec01b06ed9/6987ee4c55a859ba26a89ee7/152849173.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Books](/tag/books/) ## Books Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # J.K. Rowling Wins Court Battle Over British Tabloid's False Claims  by [Naina Bajekal](/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. May 22, 2015 12:20 PM CUT  Author J.K. Rowling attends photocall ahead of her reading from 'The Casual Vacancy' at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on September 27, 2012 in London, England. Author J.K. Rowling attends photocall ahead of her reading from 'The Casual Vacancy' at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on September 27, 2012 in London, England.Ben A. Pruchnie—Getty Images  by [Naina Bajekal](/author/naina-bajekal/)  ## Naina Bajekal Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Bajekal was executive editor and international editor at TIME. May 22, 2015 12:20 PM CUT J.K. Rowling has been “fully vindicated and her reputation restored” after the British tabloid _Daily Mail_‘s apologized to the author in London’s high court. Rowling pursued a successful libel case against the _Mail_, saying they gave a “false picture” of a September 2013 article she had written for Gingerbread, a U.K. charity that provides support to single parents. In her article, Rowling had described her experience as a single mother in Edinburgh when writing the first _Harry Potter_ book. The _Mail_ published a story ten days later alleging that Rowling’s “sob story” contained false claims about her time as a single mother and being stigmatized by churchgoers in the 1990s. In May 2014 the tabloid printed an apology and paid damages but challenged Rowling’s right to give a statement in Court. This was dismissed before a Thursday hearing during which lawyer Keith Schilling read out a two page statement on behalf of Rowling. He noted that Rowling “did not at any point criticise or complain about her treatment at the hands of fellow churchgoers.” A judge was told that the _Mail_‘s publisher had now accepted the allegations were “completely false and indefensible”, published an apology and agreed to pay Rowling substantial damages. Schilling said that the newspaper allegations left the author “understandably distressed” but she was now happy to bring the libel proceedings to a close. He added that Rowling is donating some of the damages to charity, with the rest contributing to her legal costs. \[[_BBC_](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-32829820 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3893777/jk-rowling-dail-mail-court/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3893777/jk-rowling-dail-mail-court/"},"headline":"J.K. 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