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ARTICLE · 25 JANUARY 2021

B.C. Court Holds That It Has Jurisdiction Over Twitter In Defamation Case

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In a decision released last week, Giustra v. Twitter, Inc., the Supreme Court of British Columbia dismissed an application by Twitter challenging the Court's jurisdiction to hear a defamation...

CanadaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Craig Gilchrist
Craig Gilchrist
Sarah E. Whitmore
Sarah E. Whitmore
Andrew Bernstein
Andrew Bernstein
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In a decision released last week, Giustra v. Twitter, Inc.1, the Supreme Court of British Columbia dismissed an application by Twitter challenging the Court's jurisdiction to hear a defamation action relating to tweets that billionaire plaintiff Frank Giustra alleged were defamatory. Underlying Mr. Giustra's claim is an unsettled question in Canadian law: should an unmoderated social media platform be held liable for defamatory content published by others? In dismissing Twitter's jurisdictional challenge, the Court opened the door to the possibility that the merits of this question will now be decided in Canada.

What you need to know

  • Twitter challenges jurisdiction. Twitter argued that the claim should proceed in California. Mr. Giustra resisted the application, which if granted, would have effectively ended his lawsuit. If Mr. Giustra was required to pursue his claim in California, Twitter would have no liability as a result of the U.S. Constitution's

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