2013 June 13

Gouin v. White, 2013 ABQB 332

The Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench awarded a grand total of $600,000 to two individual plaintiffs in two separate but related lawsuits against private investigators who sold certain allegedly defamatory information to third parties who were seeking a basis to sue the plaintiffs. The third parties published the allegedly defamatory information in a statement of claim filed in court, which was then the subject of a report in a daily newspaper. The allegedly defamatory information was also published by the defendants on their website. The Court awarded each of the two plaintiffs a total of $100,000 general damages for defamation in each of the two actions; general damages therefore totaled $400,000. The court also awarded each plaintiff $50,000 punitive damages in each of the two actions; punitive damages therefore totaled $200,000. The grand total awarded in this case is $600,000.