Parties

• Author: Roger McConchie; David Potts
• Profession: Member of the Bars of British Columbia and Alberta/Member of the Bar of Ontario
• Pages: 109-138

cHAFTER

SEVEN;

Parties

A.

INTRODUCTION

Defamation

actions

in

Canada have been brought

by and

against individu-

als,

trade unions, charities, trading corporations, professional regulatory

bodies such

as the

College

of

Physicians

and

Surgeons,

and

government

institutions such

as

municipalities, separate school boards,

and

police serv-

ices boards.

This

chapter provides

a

brief discussion

of the

question

of

legal capacity

to sue or be

sued

for

defamation.

The law on

this subject varies

from

province

to

province

in

part because

of

differences

in

legislation

and in

part

because courts

in

different

jurisdictions have reached

different

conclusions.

It

is

impossible

to

address

every

nuance

in

this

chapter. Prudent libel liti-

gants

and

their legal counsel will closely study

the law in

their particular

jurisdiction.

The

issues addressed

in

this chapter overlap

to

some degree with issues

discussed

in

Chapter

13,

"Identification

of the

Plaintiff,

Chapter

14,

"Pub-

lication

and

Republication"

and

Chapter

30,

"Damages."

B.

STATUS

The

status

and

immunity

of

defamation litigants

are in

large measure deter-

mined

by the

legal

principles

that apply

to

other tort claims.

An

entity

has the

status

to sue or be

sued

if it is

recognized under

the

rel-

evant statutory

or

common

law as a

natural

or

statutory

person.

A

"natural

person"

is a

living being, generally required

to be of

full

age and

mental

competence,

but it

also

includes

alien citizens,

nonresidents,

convicts

and

accused

persons,

and in a

representative

capacity,

mentally incompetent

109

110

CANADIAN LIBEL

AND

SLANDER

ACTIONS

persons

and

infants.

"Statutory" persons

are

nonliving entities recognized

by law as

possessing legal personalities separate

and

apart

from

their con-

stituent

members.

The

International

Assn.

of

Science

and

Technology

for

Development

v.

Hamza

(1995),

28

Alta.

L.R.

(3d) 125,

per

Conrad J.A.

at 131

(C.A.):

...

In

Alberta, corporations

are

deemed legal persons

by

virtue

of s.

15(1)

of the

Alberta

Business

Corporations

Act,

S.A. 1981

c.

B-15,

which

reads:

15(1)

A

corporation

has the

capacity and, subject

to

this Act,

the