The conference session on privacy was an overwhelming victory for the forces of free speech. A debate proposition, 'This house believes that the private lives of public figures are of supreme indifference to the public', was lost overwhelmingly. And there were many entertaining moments along the way. London-based media lawyer Mark Stephens, the perennial face of the law on the telly, introduced Alasdair Pepper, his 6ft 7in counterpart from London defamation specialist law firm Carter-Ruck, as: 'The biggest erection on the London libel scene.' Regardless of Mr Pepper's stature, his ears were certainly burning on that day of the conference. Over at another session, senior costs judge Peter Hurst was launching into a something-must-be-done-style tirade against spiralling levels of success fees in libel cases run on a conditional fee basis. The case he used to illustrate his point: Musa King v Telegraph Group - Carter-Ruck for the successful claimant. But the last laugh really was on Mr Stephens. In its report of the session, the IBA Daily News ran a picture of all the main participants, with the exception of him. The irony of the point was not lost on Stephen Collins, head of legal at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 'I see the Daily News respected your privacy, Mark,' he quipped.