It was a quiet week at the Court of Appeal for Ontario.
There were only four substantive civil decisions released. In two of them, the Court continued to provide guidance on the Anti-SLAPP provisions of section 137.1 of the Courts of Justice Act.
In Montour v Beacon Publishing Inc., 2019 ONCA 246, the Court affirmed that a trier of fact may consider presumed damages to reputation flowing from serious allegations, such as allegations involving considerable criminality, notwithstanding the absence of evidence of financial loss. Serious libel does not always manifest itself in financial losses and it may be difficult for a plaintiff to link reputational harm to financial loss, or to lead testimonial evidence of the actual impact of a particular defamation upon reputation. Thus, it is appropriate for a court to include presumed damages in the balancing of public interest and harm.
In Levant v Day, 2019 ONCA 244, the Court applied the principles from the Anti-SLAPP sextet in the context of a series of aggressive tweets.
Other topics covered this week include contractual interpretation and costs.
Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable weekend.
Download >> Ontario Court Of Appeal Summaries (March 25-29, 2019)
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