The New Democrats of Canada Association, a corporation that is closely related to the New Democratic Party of Canada, was successful before the Alberta Court of Appeal in its application for summary dismissal, overturning the decision of the lower court. The Association was wrongfully named in a defamation claim brought by a former political candidate for online comments made during the 2019 Alberta provincial election by other parties.
The Court of Appeal decided that the lower court erred in finding that the New Democrats of Canada Association could be held vicariously liable for the actions of the Alberta NDP. A finding of vicarious liability would have blurred the distinction between federal and provincial political parties and their related entities. Despite the Association having been previously let out of the Action by the Respondent, the Appellate Court still found it to be successful on its summary dismissal application for the purposes of awarding costs.
Fasken represented the defendant with a team led by Arif Chowdhury and included Kaitlyn Wong and Tom Kusch (Litigation).
Jurisdiction
- Alberta
