Mar 2019 Charity & NFP Law Update
On March 4, 2019, the Court of Appeal for Ontario released its decision in Lascaris v B’nai Brith Canada, in a defamation lawsuit arising out of an article and a social media “tweet” published by the respondent charity stating that the appellant, a then-candidate in the 2015 federal election for the Green Party of Canada, had advocated on behalf of terrorists on social media.
At the Superior Court, the motion judge had dismissed the action against the charity on the basis that it was a strategic lawsuit against public participation (“SLAPP lawsuit”) pursuant to section 137.1 of the Courts of Justice Act. However, the Court of Appeal held that the action had none of the elements of a SLAPP lawsuit and that accusing any person of supporting terrorists is a serious and damaging allegation which is likely to cause harm to that person’s reputation.
In its final remarks before remitting the matter back to the Superior Court, the Court of Appeal held that:
responsible discourse. Whatever disagreements there may be between the appellant’s views and the respondent’s views, those views can be exchanged and debated without the need for personal attacks. [emphasis added]
This case is an important reminder for charities and not-for-profits to adopt and implement appropriate operational policies, such as a social media or a communications policy, that carefully consider the legal risks of using social media. Such considerations will be particularly important for charities that become engaged in public discourse under the new regime of public policy dialogue and development activities.