2022 January 31

Chenel c. MédiaQMI Inc., 2022 QCCS 278

The Superior Court of Quebec dismissed a defamation claim against a journalist and Internet publication over a series of articles reporting on criminal court proceedings involving the plaintiff.  The qualified immunity under section 10(d) of Quebec’s Press Act did not apply because the articles appeared in digital format on the Internet; not in a traditional printed newspaper.  The Court held, however, that the articles were protected by a common law privilege applicable to fair reports of judicial proceedings.  In this regard, they contained no distortion and accurately reported the information generated in the court proceedings.