A major legal battle has been ongoing between Belgian broadcaster RTBF and RTL Info/Sudinfo in recent months, L’Écho reports. Belgian journalist and show host Benjamin Maréchal is suspected to have not respected a non-competition clause signed with his former employer, RTBF.
In 2021, the journalist left RTBF after more than 20 years, signing a non-competition clause in exchange for the equivalent of four and a half months' salary. In case law, a non-competition clause prohibits one party from entering into or starting a similar profession or trade in competition against the other party.
RTBF claims that Maréchal and his employer violated this clause, which was set to expire at the end of last year. The journalist would create video broadcasts on behalf of Sudinfo in June 2022. The French-speaking broadcaster and RTL later reached a new agreement, allowing Maréchal to produce video broadcasts on the website, but prohibiting him from appearing on ordinary television.
In a kick in the teeth for RTBF, just a few months later, the journalist would appear on an RTL-TVI TV broadcast about the financial crisis. RTBF immediately sued, claiming that the agreement had been violated.
On 2 November, the court of first instance sided with RTBF, forcing RTL and Sudinfo to respect the agreement and fining the journalist and media group €25,000 and €75,000, respectively.
Despite this, the legal dispute is still dragging on. The case is being appealed by RTL and Sudinfo, however the court has remained firm in its decision, citing a “serious risk of harm to RTBF.”
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The journalists' lawyers argued that his appearance on the TV programme was as an external guest and that he had agreed to appear on the show without payment. His lawyers also cited freedom of speech laws. These arguments, however, have failed to convince the judge.
“If they feel they have to disclose information in a television programme, they just have to call on anyone other than Mr. Maréchal until 22 December 2022,” the judgement concluded.
