Please complete the IRAC scenario provided below. While cases from Pacific Island jurisdictions are preferred, students may also reference pertinent cases from Australian or New Zealand common law jurisdictions. Merely citing a case is insufficient; clearly explain the relevance of each case to their argument.

Question:

Tia Hou is a social media influencer from the Solomon Islands. She gained a substantial social media following after becoming the first runner up in the Miss Solomon Islands 2025 Pageant, held in January 2025. Tia, who hails from Makira Province in the Solomon Islands, charmed viewers at home and across the wider Pacific with her bubbly personality, natural beauty and love for her home province. During her campaign for Miss Solomon Islands, she championed different causes, such as embracing natural beauty, gender equality and environmental protection.

In March 2025, Tia was approached by a local skincare business, Island Glow Ltd, to see if she would be interested in being the "face" of their newest skincare line called "Island Angel". Island Glow Ltd was owned by Tia's friend, June Tan. Eager to support her friend and her business, Tia signed a one year contract on 25 March 2025 with Island Glow Ltd. The contract contained a clause that stated:

"All social media posts, including but not limited to vlogs, product placements, and endorsements, must receive prior written approval from the Island Glow Ltd Marketing team before publication on any platform."

Though initially hesitant about the clause, Tia was reassured by June that there would be no issues and agreed to the terms in good faith.

Unfortunately, the partnership did not last very long. Over the following two months, tensions began to rise between the parties. Tia alleges that Island Glow Ltd repeatedly failed to pay her contractual payments on time. She also states that the company failed to provide timely product shipments for promotional shoots which, in turn, caused her to miss key engagement windows.

On 1 June 2025, Tia received an email from the Island Glow Marketing Team:

"Effective immediately, you are to cease all social medial content - including vlogs, lifestyle photos or mentions of any brands or products, until further notice. Your posts are in violation of the contract as we have not provided prior written consent for your social media content."

Tia was shocked to receive the email as the flagged posts included her personal content, such as her birthday vlog, her attendance at international climate change events and her daily lifestyle vlogs. None of her posts, at the point, mentioned Island Glow or any other brand.

Tia reached out to June to inquire about the email she received and to express her disappointment and confusion. June responded and accused Tia of breaching the contract and claimed that "even personal posts are subject to approval because your [Tia's] online identity was tightly aligned with Island Glow's brand image. June added that Tia had been become "increasingly difficult to work with".

Negotiations broke down. By the end of June 2025, both parties ceased communication with each other.

In July 2025, Tia signed a lucrative international deal with Rare Earth Beauty, a renown European-based ethical beauty brand. She became the face of their new product line, "Rare Pacific", a sustainable skincare range that celebrated Pacific culture and ingredients .

A week after the Rare Earth Beauty collaboration was announced, Island Glow released a new skincare line called "Unique Pasifika". The marketing campaign of this line contained images of Tia that had been shot but not previously used. The skincare line proved popular and the line was sold out soon after its launch.

Furthermore, in August 2025, June appeared on the "Pacific Women in Business" podcast where she made the following statements:

"We've worked with influencers before. Some of them are nightmares: over-hyped, self-absorbed, entitled and incredibly unprofessional. Some think they can snap a photo in a village and get a free pass to stardom. No one wants to work these days - just a fat pay check, a free ride to fame, with no follow-through"

"I think some of these global brands should really do their research before jumping into bed with someone just because they've got a small following in the Pacific. That's rubbish. Not everything that looks angelic is pure - that's all I've got to say!"

Listeners quickly speculated that June was referring to Tia. Clips of the podcast went viral on social media. Some comments read:

"Whew! Who would have thought that our angelic Miss was the devil in disguise! Sell out! I used to be a fan but she promoted that Unique Pasifika line that ruined my skin barrier and caused me to experience the worst acne I've ever had!"

"Is she talking about Tia? I thought they were besties? Guess all good things must come to an end!"

Instructions:

Tia has come to you for legal advice. Advise her in relation to the torts of defamation and passing off, their likelihood of success and available remedies. You must only discuss the torts outlined above. Do notdiscuss other tortious or criminal causes of action.Answer in IRAC form.