Max Mosley and an orgy of misunderstandings

Even if the News of the World does not lose the invasion of privacy action brought against the newspaper by Max Mosley, events in the High Court this week will have given its executives a serious jolt in the squishy organs.

Before launching their investigative attack on Mosley, senior editors on the paper, and their legal supremo Tom Crone, would have discussed the chances of their target pursuing a libel suit. Past form shows that however much the paper embellishes a sexual shenanigans story like this, the victims are nearly always too mortified to prolong the devastation and humiliation caused to them and their families.

But in presenting the events as a 'sick Nazi orgy', they overlooked several aspects of their target. First, that Max Mosley has been trying to shed himself of any connections with

his father's political persona for the last 40 years or more (Sir Oswald was the 1930s British fascist leader).

Second, that he is a man who, whatever his private tastes may be, has scrupulously promoted fair play and safety in motor racing since becoming president of the governing body, the FIA, in 1993.

Third, that he is also an ex-barrister of considerable intellect, and knows his way round a courtroom.

Renowned though he is for his toughness and determination, the paper had not guessed once the story was out, he would be prepared to confront them over their disclosure of private details of his personal life, and what he contends are malicious embellishments of those details for the sake of producing a lively front page splash.

Not just confront them but demand exemplary damages, far more substantial than normal compensatory awards, under Article 8 of the Human Rights Act of 1998.

"Max Mosley with five whipping hookers" would have made a big splash, but the