AdvocateDaily.com Staff

Australian courts continue to lead the way when it comes to online defamation and the liability of secondary publishers, Toronto lawyer and mediator Howard Winkler tells AdvocateDaily.com.

In a recent decision, the District Court of South Australia held the author of a defamatory Facebook posting liable for subsequent slanderous comments on the post by other social media users.

“At first blush, it seems extreme, but what the decision really does is it recognizes the importance of reputation and imposes a responsibility on those using social media to take care with what they write,” says Winkler, principal and founder of Winkler Dispute Resolution.

“This will have a far-reaching impact,” he adds, noting that its significance extends beyond Australia’s borders because the country — like Canada — is a common-law jurisdiction.

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A recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in a case involving an alleged multi-jurisdictional internet defamation reinforces the fact that for Ontario to be regarded as the appropriate forum, the statement of claim must sufficiently focus on the plaintiff’s Canadian reputation and damage to it in Ontario, Toronto lawyer and mediator Howard Winkler and lawyer Eryn Pond write in the Toronto Law Journal.

In the matter, a newspaper that publishes in print in Israel and online worldwide appealed the lower court decisions that allowed a Canadian resident and business owner to sue the paper for libel in Ontario, the article says.

As Winkler, principal and founder of Winkler Dispute Resolution, and Pond, a lawyer with the firm, explain, while almost all judges agreed that Ontario courts had jurisdiction over the proceeding, the majority allowed the Israeli defendant’s appeal, finding that Israel was clearly the more appropriate forum.

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The case of an Australian man who recently won his battle to sue Google puts the search engine giant on notice it may be liable for any defamatory content it facilitates, Toronto lawyer and mediator Howard Winkler tells Newstalk 610.

In a matter that dates back to 2004, the Australian High Court unanimously ruled in favour of the man, supporting his allegation that a Google search of his name might suggest he was associated with the Melbourne criminal underworld, reports CBS.

Winkler, principal and founder of Winkler Dispute Resolution, says doing a search of a new friend or potential business partner has become a routine way of researching people in modern society.

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While a former war correspondent achieved vindication in his defamation suit against one of Canada’s biggest media companies, it came at a great expense, Toronto lawyer and mediator Howard Winkler tells The Lawyer’s Daily.

The legal publication reports the Alberta Court of Appeal increased the costs awarded to journalist Arthur Kent in his successful defamation case against Postmedia, “saying the trial judge erred when she said allegations of intentional concealment of documents were unproven.”

Kent, who gained notoriety in 1991 as the ‘Scud Stud’ while reporting on the first Persian Gulf War, ran as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the Alberta legislature in 2008.

During his bid for office, a reporter wrote a critical article about Kent. At trial, Justice Jo’Ann Strekaf noted, “the overall tenor of the article is that Arthur Kent is a politically naïve arrogant has-been journalist with a huge ego whose election campaign is in disarray and who is doomed to become an ineffective MLA if elected.”

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Toronto lawyer and mediator Howard Winkler tells the Globe and Mail he supports former provincial Progressive Conservative leader Patrick Brown’s plan to set the record straight in a new book about his ‘sensational political assassination.”

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“I support Mr. Brown’s initiative, especially in light of the fact that the legal system does not provide the kind of timely disclosure of the truth that can be achieved through his proposed book,” Winkler says, adding he expects the book will be reviewed prior to publication to ensure the content can be defended.

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Toronto lawyer and mediator Howard Winkler tells various news outlets that in his view CTV’s reporting on former provincial conservative Leader Patrick Brown represents the “most egregious” defamation in Canadian history. See Global News, Sun Media, Toronto Star, Yahoo News

Brown has launched an $8-million action against CTV, claiming the broadcaster defamed him by airing a news report detailing allegations of sexual misconduct by two women. Brown denied the claims but was forced to resign his leadership of the Ontario Progressive Conservative party.

“Regrettably, it is unlikely that the harm done by CTV will ever be fully repaired,” Winkler told Global News.

Read the full article on AdvocateDaily.com.