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Blog
Bona fide complaints to police are matters of public interest (Zeppa v. Rea)
Monday, October 23, 2023Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, Defamation, SLAPP, Matter of Public Interest
When a person believes that someone has committed a crime, it is, of course, perfectly reasonable that they...
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Defamation action against “consumer alert” reporter dismissed (Boraks v. Hussein)
Tuesday, September 19, 2023Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, Defamation, SLAPP, Dismissal of Action
In general, ordinary consumers of goods and services are viewed as a vulnerable class. While in certain circumstances, consumers can be protected by...
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$50,000 costs guideline for successful anti-SLAPP motion not applied again
Thursday, July 6, 2023Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, Defamation, SLAPP, Costs
As we have written before, Canada’s civil court system is “a loser pays” jurisdiction. In general, a party that loses a motion or...
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Female mining executive’s defamation claim against government employee allowed to proceed
Tuesday, November 15, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, SLAPP, Defamation
Ontario and British Columbia are the only two common law provinces that have anti-SLAPP legislation. This legislation permits the early dismissal of claims that...
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Watchdog’s defamation action against municipality allowed to continue
Monday, January 17, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationPolitical Law, Torts, SLAPP
The law of defamation in the political arena has a long history. Passionate sparring between political opponents and the tendency to attack an opponent’s policies and character has
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Ford wins again! Court of Appeal for Ontario upholds dismissal of defamation action against him
Friday, November 26, 2021Stephen A. Thiele, Alexander Melfi, Gavin J. Tighe, K.C.LitigationDefamation, Torts, SLAPP
Section 137.1 of the Courts of Justice Act (the “CJA”) has made it harder for a plaintiff to maintain a defamation action against a defendant where the issue related to the expression involves a matter of...
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Court Refuses To Dismiss Claims That Did Not Engage SLAPP Provisions
Wednesday, September 1, 2021Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, Defamation, SLAPP
Section 137.1 of the Courts of Justice Act (the “CJA”), which permits the dismissal of actions related to an expression made with respect to a matter of public interest, continues to...
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Zak Sabbath’s defamation claim allowed to continue against Mandy Morbid
Friday, June 18, 2021James R.G. CookLitigationSocial Media, Facebook, Defamation, SLAPP, libel
In early 2019, a former model and adult film performer, Amanda Nagy also known as “Mandy Morbid,” posted a message on her Facebook page saying that Zak Smith, her former husband, artist, tabletop role-playing game (RPG) creator and...
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Gratuitous Defamatory Tweets About Plaintiff Not Protected as a Matter of Public Interest
Monday, April 5, 2021Stephen A. ThieleLitigationTorts, Defamation, SLAPP, Pre-trial Disposition
The internet and social media have spawned much civil litigation in the area of defamation. There is no cost to obtaining a Twitter account, for example, and to “tweeting” out a...
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