Law Times

PAGE 4 NEWS May 2, 2011 • Law TiMes Perjury alleged Continued from page 1 According to documents filed by Ionson, one sexual encounter took place at a Woodstock hotel on April 1, 2004, the very day Sobeski claimed his winnings without her knowledge. A month later, she had obtained a court or- der freezing half of his assets until determination of the case. In December 2005, ahead of Gavin Magrath, right, does his jester routine during a recent rehearsal for the Lawyer Show. Actors now referring work Continued from page 1 Davies LLP, was able to make it only because an out-of-town trial had collapsed. For her efforts, she gets a jab |in the eye from a gesticulating Gavin Magrath, who is rather absorbed in his role as the exuberant court jester Touchstone. "I guess I shouldn't actually close my eyes when I'm doing it," says the founding partner at Magrath O'Connor LLP. For Nathwani, a first-year associate at Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, the play is a large com- mitment but one that's well worth it. "When you're busy at work, there can be times when it's more difficult to juggle, but it's always fun to do and the Nightwood people are great," he says. "The job can be all-consuming sometimes, and it's nice to have something that requires you to get outside the office and lets you meet a whole bunch of new people." Nathwani is among the many cast members who returned after taking part last year. The rest are new recruits with the final total of 35 cast members boiled down from more than 60 people who auditioned. Last year, he played Demetrius, another of Shakespeare's lover roles. "Orlando is another lover part, which is very exciting and I think appropriately cast," he says jokingly. "I've been really lucky with some big- ger roles and I think I'll be back in the future in some role or another." Nathwani says he's glad to see so many fresh faces for the Lawyer Show's second run as well. "A lot of the fun of the play is making new friends and meeting new people. From last year, some people have become friends, some people have referred work to other people, some peo- ple have even started practising together." By day, Nathwani practises construction and commercial law. But one evening last week, he was dealing with even bigger issues as Orlando after his brother exiled him and he parted from his true love. To make things worse, he's drag- ging along a frail old servant played by Doug Watters, a lawyer with the legal services branch of the provincial Ministry of the Environment. The Lawyer Show has been a big step up for Nathwani, whose previous thespian experience amounted to little more than a Grade 8 part in Anne of Green Gables. "I find it a lot of fun, but it's not something I've done a lot of," he says. "When I saw the e-mail, I knew instantly that I was going to volunteer. If I happened to be actu- ally any good at acting, I think it would be the best, most fun way to make a living." Peirson says last year's effort has given the Lawyer Show momentum and believes it could become a permanent fixture in the legal calendar. With a successful experience under its belt, she says it's been easier for Nightwood to attract both actors and sponsors. "The Lawyer Show is Nightwood's most suc- cessful fundraiser to date," she says. "I think we've really upped everything this year." Tickets for the shows are now on sale. As well, the actors are documenting their own progress on a blog at nightwoodlawyershow.wordpress.com. a hearing for a temporary sup- port claim by Ionson, the for- mer couple traded accusations in affidavits. Sobeski claimed Ionson had physically and ver- bally abused him in incidents before their divorce. She in turn said the marital breakdown had left her "physically and psycho- logically unable to work" or sup- port her children. Ionson had asked for a lump- sum payment of $262,000 plus $9,000 per month in order to support herself while she fought the case. The parties eventually reached a settlement on the is- sue before the judge could rule, but during the media firestorm, Mamo had given an interview to The Globe and Mail. "There are two versions of what happened here. By Wednes- day, people will understand that Nynna's is the accurate one. And they'll see that his is a perjured account," Mamo said, accord- ing to Perell's decision. None of the allegations against Mamo, nor the perjury claim, have been proven in court. Four months later in March 2006, Sobeski sued Mamo for defamation. Mamo admits to making the comments but pleaded that his statements were true and had the protec- tion of qualified privilege. In his defence, Mamo includ- ed charts that allegedly showed inconsistencies in Sobeski's testi- mony. In the meantime, he wants to use documents in Ionson's file to back up his case. They include document briefs, offers to settle, recorded conversations, and TAP INTO CANADA'S MOST AUTHORITATIVE SOURCE ON PRODUCT LIABILITY NEW EDITION PRODUCTS LIABILITY, FIFTH EDITION STEPHEN M. WADDAMS, B.A., M.A., Ph.D., LL.B., LL.M., S.J.D., F.R.S.C. Canada has seen a rise in product liability claims in recent years due to increased consumer activism and the growing availability of class actions. For more than 35 years, Products Liability has been the leading authority on the subject of product liability law in Canada. The fifth edition of this highly respected book effectively pulls together legislation and case law that cuts across several legal disciplines including negligence, strict liability, warranty and public policy. 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Ionson denied Mamo's request to waive privilege in late 2009 de- spite the fact that he only wants documents disclosed to Sobeski during the matrimonial litiga- tion. In response, Mamo moved for an order that the deemed un- dertaking shouldn't apply to the documents. According to Perell, the request was unusual because the rule is designed to prevent parties and their lawyers from using the opposing side's docu- ments in another action rather than their own client's files. "Despite the oddity, in my opinion, the deemed undertak- ing applies because it is being asserted by a person for whom the rule was designed to offer protection," Perell wrote. He also noted Ionson wasn't a par- ty to the defamation action and was entitled to privacy. As Perell pointed out, the situ- ation put Mamo "between a rock and a hard place" because of the conflict between his obligation to disclose relevant documents in his possession and his professional duties to his former client. But he did provide Mamo with what he called an "escape route" given that many of the documents he was re- questing were filed with the court and therefore weren't covered by the deemed undertaking. For those still covered, Perell said Mamo could exploit the dis- tinction between documents in his possession, which he must dis- close and produce for inspection, and those formerly in his pos- session that need only to be dis- closed. "The escape route for Mr. Mamo is for him to return Ms. Ionson's documents and property to her," Perell wrote. "While he must disclose her documents, he cannot and he need not produce them for Mr. Sobeski." Mamo could then call Ionson as a witness or move for an order for production by a non-party, Perell said. Untitled-3 1 www.lawtimesnews.com 4/21/11 3:44:52 PM Digital LT.indd 4 4/29/11 11:28:46 AM Photo: Michael McKiernan

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