2017 November 15

McLaughlin v Maynard, 2017 ONSC 6820

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice dismissed defamation claims by a mayor and town councillor over seven allegedly defamatory Facebook posts by a local resident pursuant to section 137.1 of the Ontario Courts of Justice Act (Anti-Slapp legislation).  “All of the impugned statements were about acts or omissions on the part of the plaintiffs in the discharge of their public duties.”  Although the Court found that certain defamatory allegations were not protected by the pleaded defences of fair comment or responsible communication, it concluded that the harm was not sufficiently serious that the public interest in permitting the proceeding to continue outweighed the public interest in protecting the defendant’s expression.