Anti-Slapp Bill Enters Legislature (Read it Below)

Environmental Defense Working Group

BC Law Reform – Stop SLAPP Suits

https://www.facebook.com/StopSLAPPsuits

News Release

Burnaby May 26, 2015

A Real and Present Danger:

B.C. Urgently Needs Anti-SLAPP Legislation

The Environmental Defense Working Group (EDRF) applauds the BC New Democratic Party for taking a leadership role in proposing an anti-SLAPP Act to protect Charter rights in the province. SLAPP suits, or Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation, are becoming more common in Canada and experts agree there is an urgent need for legislation to prevent them.[1] The proposed Act will allow Judges greater flexibility to evaluate claims of malicious lawsuits aimed at silencing and preventing protests against large corporations.  The proposed Act does not, of course, protect unlawful conduct.

The Act follows legislation in Quebec to stop SLAPP suits and protect Charter rights and Bill 83, Protection of Public Participation Act, 2013, which is presently before the Ontario legislature. 28 US states have already adopted effective anti-SLAPP legislation to protect Constitutional rights.[2]

SLAPP suits are lawsuits generally brought by large corporations or government agencies to silence individuals and community-based groups. The term SLAPP suit is used in part to describe a case where the goal of the party bringing the lawsuit is generally not to win, but to silence critics and deny them their Charter rights. [3] As such, SLAPP suits threaten public participation and thereby the democratic process in Canada.

The power of a SLAPP comes from the use of the court system to intimidate individuals, communities, unions and civic groups and to exhaust their often very limited resources. It is not the strength of the lawsuit itself, but the threat of onerous and expensive legal proceedings that makes SLAPPs so harmfully effective. SLAPP suits often require enormous resources to defend against and can exhaust the resources of any ordinary defendant. Activities that attract SLAPPs may include citizens reporting of environmental violations, filing complaints with government agencies, contacting the media, speaking at public meetings, participating at hearings before administrative tribunals or engaging in public campaigns.[4]

There are several lawsuits against protestors presently before the BC Supreme Court.[5] But the most well known is the $5.6 million civil suit against five defendants by Kinder Morgan the giant Texas based oil company. That suit was brought to an abrupt conclusion when Kinder Morgan issued a unilateral discontinuance after one defendant had argued in BC Supreme Court for a dismissal, recognition that the civil suit was a SLAPP suit and special costs and was proposing to appeal Kinder Morgan’s civil suit.

Alan Dutton was one of the five named in Kinder Morgan’s lawsuit and notes that “the effect of a SLAPP suit is to silence critics, deny freedom of speech and assembly along with other democratic rights. SLAPP suits also destroy community organizations and exert a ‘chill factor’ on important public discussion and non-violent peaceful protests.”

Alan Dutton, a spokesperson for the EDRF, leads a law reform project funded by West Coast Environmental Law aimed at bringing legal experts together to evaluate solutions to SLAPP suits as well to engage the public in discussion of Charter rights in the context of lawful public protests. Alan added “I believe that "SLAPP suits represent a clear and present danger to Charter rights in BC and we are glad that the NDP is taking the issue seriously and has taken action by tabling a Bill to stop SLAPP suits." 

The EDRF urges all Parties in BC to support anti-SLAPP legislation. The EDRF and is organizing a petition to encourage all elected officials to support the proposed Act.

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The Environmental Defense Working Group is a newly formed group and has received two grants from West Coast Environmental Law to develop a made-in-BC solution to SLAPP suits.

For more information, please contact Alan Dutton and the Environmental Defense Working Group at 604- 290-1108, or e-mail aldutton@gmail.com.

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[1] James E. Shragge, “Recommended Legislative Measures to Counter Strategic Lawsuits.”

[2] EcoJustice, “Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP): Legislation Urgently Needed in Ontario.”

[3] Michaelin and Chris Tollefson, “Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation: The British Columbia Experience.”

[4] Canadian Civil Liberties Association and Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, “

 FACT SHEET: Protection of Public Participation Act.”

[5] The classic SLAPP suitcase in BC was the Cedar Hills Eight. See Chris Tollefson and Bram Rogachevsky, “ Grassroot’s Cedar Hill Eight SLAPP Back.”