TikTok influencer Krystal Joyce has won a little over $20,000 after suing Zara for defamation. The defamation lawsuit stems from the fact that a staff member from Zara opened the curtains on the influencer while she was trying on clothes.
The 20-year-old claimed that she was only partly dressed when a security guard and other staff members “interrogated” her, making her feel upset and treating her like a criminal.
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The staff was hostile to her
Joyce told the court that the security staff member stopped her from leaving and repeatedly told her: “I am calling the guards,” and held her hostage in the store.
The implication that she was “engaged in criminal activity” in front of shoppers and within earshot led to the defamation lawsuit.
She was let go, but at what cost?
The staff pestered her until they eventually allowed her to go onto the shop floor in the Blanchardstown shopping center. By then, the TikToker, with over 122,000 followers, felt humiliated and took the matter up to court.
The judge agreed with her
Joyce won her case as the judge took her side, agreeing that the staff had done her wrong. The judge ordered Zara’s bosses and their security company to pay her 20,000 euros ($20,962) in damages.
She was doing it for the content
Joyce’s barrister, Esther Earley, confirmed that Joyce often filmed herself trying clothes on in stores’ changing rooms for her content on TikTok.
Early added that Joyce may promote the clothes, telling her followers where they could buy these items.
The judge didn’t find the store witnesses credible
Judge Roderick Maguire found it hard to take the store witnesses’ testimonies into account due to the “glaring inconsistencies” in the evidence provided.
In addition, Earley suggested during cross-examination that the testimonies provided by the Zara staff had been falsified.
The judge ruled in her favor for being credible
The judge explained his ruling, saying: “I find Ms. Joyce was a truthful witness and was particularly upset because she has a social media presence through which she does her best to raise awareness for the Travelling community of which she is a member.”
What Joyce got out of it
Joyce was awarded a total of €20,000 in damages: €10,000 against ITX Retail Limited, which operates Zara, and €10,000 against security company Bidvest Noonan (ROI) Limited, which provided the store with its guards.
In addition, the defendants are sentenced to pay for the court costs, though an amount had not been specified.
