Law Times - Newsmakers

Dec 2010 Newsmakers

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news Lawbuzz suit gets messy as four lawyers named defendants BY GLENN KAUTH T he legal community was abuzz this year with news that libel litigation related to the now-defunct Lawbuzz online legal forum named four lawyers as defendants. The dispute relates to a defamation action by AdviceScene, another legal web site claiming Lawbuzz harmed its reputa- tion by allowing the four online posters to make derogatory comments about it. AdviceScene's statement of claim seeks $500,000 in damages for postings about advicescene.com on lawbuzz.ca by the four lawyers under pseudonyms. Following AdviceScene's complaints about the comments, the two web sites reached a settlement under which Law Buzz Canada Ltd. agreed to post an apology and identify four of its members to the plaintiff. The comments, according to AdviceScene, cast doubt on its legitimacy. In its statement of claim, it alleged contributors called AdviceScene a "scam" and compared it to viral market- ing. They also allegedly said AdviceScene was impersonating a judge who contributes to the web site and was in violation of law society regulations. None of the allegations have been proven in court. In February, Law Times reported that AdviceScene had named Aurora, Ont., personal injury lawyer Russell Howe, a former president of the Ontario Trial Lawyers Association, as a defendant. He quickly struck back against the agreement to reveal the posters' identities. "Is there a principle they could have followed that if they offered anonymity, they should have stuck up for the contributors?" he told Law Times. "That would have been nice." At the same time, Howe claimed that opinions posted under his pseudonym didn't even refer to the plaintiff. In one comment, for example, he allegedly wrote: "Anonymous legal advice is a crock. If you really want to give legal advice and are qualified to do so, put your money where your mouth is. Too many cowards on the Internet as it is." "Somehow, they came to the conclusion I was talking about them," Howe told Law Times. "I wasn't." A few months later, the lawsuit had expanded to name the three other lawyers who allegedly made libelous comments: Tycho Manson, director of legal affairs at Quebecor Media Inc.; Kevin Preston, a lawyer working in Brockville, Ont.; and Jenny Rutherford of Vancouver. The plaintiff was able to track down two of the defendants fol- lowing a court order demanding that Internet service providers Bell and Shaw release contact information related to the post- ers' IP addresses. Eventually, the defendants answered the allegations with statements of defence. "This is a strategic lawsuit designed solely to interfere with Ms. Ruther- ford's right to freedom of expression," Rutherford's statement of defence asserted. At the same time, Manson claimed in his statement of defence that AdviceScene founder Nancy Kinney had initi- ated the forum thread containing the allegedly defamatory comments. "Kinney's comments and her poll invited Lawbuzz users to show their opinions about the AdviceScene site," his statement of defence maintained. Eventually, Manson hit back with a $1-million lawsuit for allegedly libelous comments made about him by an anonymous blogger and participants on the web site lawbuzzlitigation.blog- spot.com. The situation, then, is a messy one. It's a case, however, that has lawyers watching. Media lawyer Alan Shanoff, for exam- ple, noted the case highlighted the false illusion of anonymity people believe they have on the Internet. As for the postings themselves, he drew an important distinction between opin- ion and fact. "Criticism has to be based on something," he told Law Times. "You can't have an opinion based on mere speculation." He added: "Some of that doesn't sound like opinion to me. It sounds like an assertion of fact." As of mid-November, the case had yet to move forward in the courts other than a motion by Howe for security for costs. According to Antonin Pribetic, a lawyer representing Kinney, the court adjourned the motion pending consideration of whether the other defendants wished to seek similar relief. FEEDS LEGAL 10 December 2010 A daily blog of Canadian Legal News Coming soon to The Blog of & Aurora, Ont., lawyer Russell Howe was among four lawyers named as defendants. canad ian L a w ye r canad L a w Times ianlaw yermag .com

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