Canadian Lawyer

w w w . C A N A D I A N L a w y e r m a g . c o m N o v e m b e r / D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 4 7 N.S. legal aid reachiNg out to private bar Central A nti-SLAPP (strategic lawsuits against public participation) activists couldn't have dreamed of a better case. Last August, a billionaire owner of nursing homes was ordered by a Quebec Superior Court judge to pay $300,000 in damages, including $200,000 in punitive damages, to a woman whose annual income is $12,000. In 2011, the owner Eddy Savoie, launched a $400,000 defamation suit against retiree Pierrette Thériault-Martel, whose mother was a resident of one of Savoie's nursing homes. She thought the quality of the care was well below acceptable standards and said so in media interviews, detailing what she had seen during her visits with her mother. In September 2013, the Superior Court ruled Savoie's suit abusive, applying art. 54.1 to 54.4 of the Quebec Code of Civil Procedure. Savoie filed an appeal that was immediately dismissed. In November 2013, Thériault-Martel filed an application for more than $600,000 in damages against Savoie, including $500,000 in punitive damages. Savoie wasn't put off. He contested the court's jurisdiction and was dis- missed by the Superior Court. He appealed that decision and was dismissed again by the Court of Appeal, and in April 2014, the court threw out his lawyer's request to reschedule the hearings and, a few days later, also threw out Savoie's application for a gag order. In his decision, Justice Gary Morrison blasted Savoie for using his "domi- nant situation" with the "strategic goal" of shutting up those who criticized his activities. "In spite of the decisions rendered by this court and by the Court of Appeal, the respondent doesn't admit to any wrongdoing. He shows no remorse, quite the opposite. He testifies that after he read the judgment that ruled his suit abusive, he intended to keep on doing exactly what he had done before," he wrote. The judge also wrote that Savoie served a defamation counterclaim to Thériault-Martel the day before she filed her application for damages, based on the same facts supporting his first claim, which was declared abusive. Of course, he filed an appeal, due to be heard Nov. 28. "Everybody's talking about this case in Quebec. . . . It went viral!" says Jean-Pierre Ménard, of Ménard Martin, a Montreal firm specializing in health cases. "I have the perfect anti-SLAPP law case," he told Canadian Lawyer. There is a huge imbalance between the parties in terms of wealth and power and no real damages were proven in the defamation suit, he says. He thinks the anti-SLAPP sections of the Code of Civil Procedure are going to become "as important a tool as the [Quebec and Canadian] charters are." These provisions were introduced in 2009 under the title: "An Act to prevent the improper use of the courts and promote freedom of expression and citizen participation in public debate," and are considered to be the only anti-SLAPP legislation in Canada. For Ménard, it will be a landmark case that will have an important influence across the country. As a matter of fact, a legal fight recently broke out between a bar owner and a Montreal city councillor, as reported by La Presse. The councillor had received many complaints from residents about the noise and frequent n ova Scotia Legal Aid has implemented a new three-year strategic plan, "Here to Help." To ensure the plan is success- ful, the organization is looking for a little help from the private bar. Three areas require support from the private bar. Two of those are ongoing and obvious: serving on the organization's board of direc- tors and serving as duty counsel. The latter has proved to be particularly difficult. Despite the fact 20 per cent of legal aid cases are handled by the private bar, getting lawyers to take on the work has been a challenge, says NSLA executive director Karen Hudson. The reluctance is undoubtedly linked in part to traditionally low hourly rates that have made participation for many lawyers simply not pos- sible. An across-the-board hike of $10, up to a maximum of $95 an hour for the more serious cases, has now been implemented. Still, agreeing to assist will mean some lost income or working partially pro bono for most lawyers. Other lawyers — senior and experienced — are stepping up. Hudson approached a small group of well-known and well-regarded lawyers about serving as mentors and advisers to junior counsel taking on legal aid cases. "We're prepared to put our name forward," says Amherst lawyer Doug Shatford. While senior lawyers can charge Nova Scotia Legal Aid for their time, most of those approached have offered to volunteer, he notes. "I'm more than happy to assist a junior lawyer when they need some advice." Providing advice does more than give legal aid a helping hand. Lawyers and the profession both benefit. "It helps ensure people have the confi- dence they need," says Shatford. NSLA's outreach to the private bar is about more than meeting the needs of clients. It's about meet- ing the needs of harder-to-reach Nova Scotians and enhancing access to justice. A new initiative with BOYNECLARKE LLP, for example, involves pro- viding outreach and delivering legal information and summary advice in property, wills, and estates matters to three predominantly African Nova Sco- tian communities. The new community-based ser- vice involves getting out of legal aid offices and into the communities themselves, says Hudson. — DM continued on page 8 'A little bandage on a big wound'

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