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ARTICLE · 09 SEPTEMBER 2021

Court Refuses To Dismiss Claims That Did Not Engage SLAPP Provisions

Gardiner Roberts LLP
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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...

CanadaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Stephen Thiele
Stephen Thiele
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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 receive judicial comment as parties test the scope and limits of the provision.

In Schwartz v. Collette, 2021 ONSC 2138, the court, which had ruled last year that a number of defamatory allegations should be dismissed because they involved expressions related to a matter of public interest, was required to determine whether a remaining allegedly defamatory comment and a claim for harassment/intentional infliction of mental/emotional suffering that were not related to any public interest matter could proceed or also needed to be dismissed because of the earlier finding.

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