2020 November 25

T.M. c. Dis son nom, 2020 QCCS 3938

he Quebec Superior Court dismissed an application by “T.M.” for an order allowing him to proceed anonymously with a defamation action over Facebook, Instagram and website posts listing him as a sexual abuser.  T.M. was fired because of these posts.  Although he obtained new employment, he feared being fired again if his new employer learned of his defamation lawsuit.  T.M. told the Court that the defendants contacted him before posting his name and were not themselves claiming to be victims of his abuse.   Applying the “open court” principle discussed by the Supreme Court of Canada in Dagenais v. CBC, 1994 CanLII 39 (SCC) and R v. Mentuck, 2001 SCC 76, the Court ruled that the public’s right to the open administration of justice trumped the plaintiff’s interest in confidentiality.  The Court noted that the possibility of injury to reputation, humiliation and embarrassment are not generally sufficient to justify a request for anonymity.     See also on this website “The Open Court Principle in Canada”