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ARTICLE · 19 FEBRUARY 2018

Full Indemnity Costs A Powerful Deterrent in Ontario's Anti-SLAPP Regime

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Second, it encourages the bar to take on the defence of such actions even if the defendant will not likely be able to pay for them.

CanadaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Jacob Damstra
Jacob Damstra
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Two recent decisions arising out of the same case, Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority v. Smith, provide some important judicial guidance regarding Ontario's relatively new "Anti-SLAPP" provisions in the Courts of Justice Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. C.43. This article considers the Court's cost award against the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority ("NPCA") and four private individuals and entities pursuant to s.137.1(7) of the Courts of Justice Act, following the dismissal of their defamation actions: 2018 ONSC 127. My companion article, "Court Confirms Government Entities Cannot Sue Critical Citizens for Defamation", discusses the Court's dismissal of the defamation actions brought by NPCA and others against retired Air Force Major Ed Smith in relation to communications in a report criticizing the administration and governance of the conservation authority: 2017 ONSC 6973. "Court Confirms Government Entities Cannot Sue Critical Citizens for Defamation" also provides

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