2016 December 22

Moak v. Hart, [2016] O.J. No. 6689, Court File No: SC 15-386

The Small Claims Court (Cornwall Ontario) awarded the plaintiff $2,000 general damages against the defendants for conspiracy to injure his reputation in relation to Facebook posts. The Court found that the defendants conspired to first lay a complaint with the plaintiff’s professional body, and secondly, to circulate on Facebook the fact that a complaint had been laid and some of the contents of the complaint. The professional regulator eventually dismissed the complaint, which was protected by absolute privilege. The Facebook posts were only protected by qualified privilege, however, which was defeated by the Court’s finding that the defendants were actuated by malice. In this case, unlike a defamation case, the essential element of the proven tort of conspiracy is the agreement and intent to injure. In assessing damages, the Court stated: “The publication lasted days and not weeks. I have no direct evidence whether the blogs were widely read. To some extent they give the impression of bloggers shouting in an echo chamber and they may have been simply preaching to the converted.“