For those who followed the WE Charity affair in Canada and are familiar with my book, What WE Lost: Inside the Attack on Canada’s Largest Children’s Charity, published in 2022 and narrated in audiobook version by Martin Luther King III, there was a noteworthy ruling (https://adobe.ly/3QHCzvo) this week in a case that I’ve followed and is featured in my book.
The case involves a defamation suit by Theresa Kielburger (mother of Marc and Craig Kielburger the founders of WE Charity) against Jesse Brown and other reporters from Canadaland website/podcast.
In my book, I outlined how some in the Canadian media attacked WE Charity and anyone related to it with impunity. Not entirely, it seems, because the Ontario Superior Court of Justice has now decided that Brown (Canadaland’s Publisher) and other reporters from the outlet will have to proceed to trial and face defamation claims based on statements made during a podcast about the WE Charity affair.
Given the research I did, I found significant the pointed remarks from the presiding judge, Justice E.M. Morgan:
“The Plaintiff’s testimony in this respect was credible and impactful. It was especially poignant in comparison with the callous disregard of reputation and personal damage expressed by Brown toward the Plaintiff. In attempting to explain why he and Canadaland never sought the Plaintiff’s response to the repeated Money Passage allegation, Brown stated in his sworn affidavit: “[W]e did not seek comment [from the Plaintiff] for the same reason why I didn't seek comment from my own mother; neither of them were involved."
“The statement implies that from Brown’s point of view the Plaintiff’s feelings are worth nothing; he was only concerned to cover himself and his company in the event of an allegation by Craig as former plaintiff in the SN Claim. The fact that he was speaking about the Plaintiff, and imposing personal pain on the Plaintiff by repeating an allegation about her that he was aware had been seriously contested, if not established as entirely false, was seen by him as irrelevant. The cynicism of Brown’s explanation not only accentuates the defamatory sting of his words but could be considered high handed and oppressive: Hill, at paras. 188-190.”
For more interesting commentary on the case, it is worth reading lawyer and journalist Mark Bourrie’s recent article below as well his review of my book (https://lnkd.in/gx7ZKxKv).
It will be interesting to see how this all plays out during the trial. I will also continue keeping an eye on the other big legal case related to the WE Charity affair, WE Charity’s lawsuit (https://bit.ly/CBClawsuit) against the CBC for defamation, pending in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
In this post, I analyze the latest legal action over press coverage of WE Charity and the Kielburger family. Yesterday, Theresa Kielburger, the family matriarch, fended off an anti-SLAPP motion filed by Canadaland, its publisher Jesse Brown and employees being sued for defamation.
https://lnkd.in/gnwQSd72
![Fair Press by Mark Bourrie - Canadaland SLAPPed Down in Scathing Rebuke]()
Fair Press by Mark Bourrie - Canadaland SLAPPed Down in Scathing Rebuke
fairpress.ca
