2009 August 6

Borud and others v. Robulack, 2009 YKSC 59

The Yukon Supreme Court awarded each of the two individual plaintiffs general damages of $25,000 plus aggravated damages of $10,000 against the defendant, a freelance journalist, over articles published in two local newspapers and on the defendant’s Internet blog. The corporate plaintiff was awarded $10,000 damages for loss of income. With respect to the individual plaintiffs, the Court stated: “…[W]hat is aggravating in this case is the aspect of the internet and the specific invitation to others to communicate with [the plaintiffs]” which resulted in five or six messages to the plaintiffs’ email or by texting. The Court held this was “an invitation of potential harassment and this was certainly an egregious factor.”