Vaquero Energy v. Weir,

• Judge: Kent, J.
• Neutral Citation: 2004 ABQB 68
• Citation: (2004), 352 A.R. 191 (QB),2004 ABQB 68,[2006] 5 WWR 176,352 AR 191,54 Alta LR (4th) 247,[2004] AJ No 84 (QL),352 A.R. 191,[2004] A.J. No 84 (QL),(2004), 352 AR 191 (QB)
• Date: 07 January 2004
• Court: Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta (Canada)

Vaquero Energy Ltd. v. Weir (2004), 352 A.R. 191 (QB)

MLB headnote and full text

Temp. Cite: [2004] A.R. TBEd. FE.043

Vaquero Energy Ltd. and Robert N. Waldner (plaintiffs) v. Nick Weir aka napo9 and alec6 (defendant)

(0201-11300; 2004 ABQB 68)

Indexed As: Vaquero Energy Ltd. et al. v. Weir

Alberta Court of Queen's Bench

Judicial District of Calgary

Kent, J.

January 29, 2004.

Summary:

Waldner was president and CEO of a company hired to consolidate the business. During consolidation the company's stock price fell significantly. Over a four month period, a website providing a chat room for posting messages about particular stocks received 48 e-mails conveying disparaging comments about the company and Waldner. Waldner and the company brought a defamation action for damages against Weir, the person alleged to have sent the e-mails. At issue was (1) whether the e-mails were defamatory; (2) whether it was proved that Weir sent the e-mails; and (3) the quantum of damages.

The Alberta Court of Queen's Bench allowed the action. The e-mails were clearly defamatory. The evidence established that Weir sent the e-mails. The court awarded the company $10,000 general damages. Waldner was awarded $40,000 general damages and $25,000 punitive damages.

Damage Awards - Topic 632

Torts - Injury to the person - Libel and slander - Forty-eight defamatory e-mails posted in a chat room dedicated to messages about particular stocks included disparaging remarks about the company and its president and CEO particularly - The CEO was accused of being insane, retarded and managing the company for his own benefit - The CEO was compared to Hitler, Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden - The Alberta Court of Queen's Bench awarded the company $10,000 general damages - The CEO, who was subjected to vicious attacks on his reputation, was awarded $40,000 general damages and $25,000 punitive damages - See paragraphs 22 to 26.

Damage Awards - Topic 2015

Exemplary or punitive damages - Libel and slander - [See Damage Awards - Topic 632 ].

Libel and Slander - Topic 644

The statement - What constitutes defamatory statements - General principles - Disparagement of reputation - Forty-eight e-mails posted in a chat room dedicated to messages about particular stocks included disparaging remarks about the company and its president and CEO particularly - The CEO was accused of being insane, retarded and managing the company for his own benefit - The CEO was compared to Hitler, Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden - The Alberta Court of Queen's Bench held that the statements, which tended to lower the CEO and company in the minds of right-thinking members of society, were defamatory - See paragraph 11.

Libel and Slander - Topic 1945

Publication - What constitutes - Internet (world wide web) - Over a four month period 48 defamatory e-mails were posted on a web site reserved for comments respecting particular stocks - An expert in computer forensics traced the IP addresses to a company which the defendant worked for - One of the IP addresses was manually installed on the defendant's laptop computer - The defendant had unsuccessfully sought to be placed on the board of directors of the company defamed and had commenced a class action against the company - The defendant denied sending the e-mails, submitting that someone else where he worked must have sent them or that someone "spoofed" (stole) his IP addresses (three different times) - The Alberta Court of Queen's Bench was satisfied on a balance of probabilities that the defendant sent the e-mails - The e-mails were similar and most of them came from the defendant's laptop - The court rejected the submission of "spoofing" or that the e-mails were sent by an unknown third party - See paragraphs 12 to 13.

Libel and Slander - Topic 4429

Damages - General damages - Measure of - Exemplary or punitive damages - When available - [See Damage Awards - Topic 632 ].

Libel and Slander - Topic 4430

Damages - General damages - Measure of - Where corporation or business defamed -[See Damage Awards - Topic 632 ].

Cases Noticed:

Botiuk v. Bardyn et al., [1995] 3 S.C.R. 3; 186 N.R. 1; 85 O.A.C. 81, refd to. [para. 11].

Botiuk v. Toronto Free Press Publications Ltd. - see Botiuk v. Bardyn et al.

Reichmann v. Berlin, [2002] O.T.C. 464 (Sup. Ct.), refd to. [para. 14].

Hill v. Church of Scientology of Toronto and Manning (1995), 184 N.R. 1; 84 O.A.C. 1; 126 D.L.R.(4th) 129, refd to. [para. 14].

Southam Inc. et al. v. Chelekis et al., [1998] B.C.T.C. Uned. 483 (S.C.), affd. (2000), 133 B.C.A.C. 253; 217 W.A.C. 253 (C.A.), refd to. [para. 18].

Authors and Works Noticed:

McConchie, Roger D., Article, The Lawyers' Weekly (August 27, 1999), vol. 19, no. 15, generally [para. 18].

Counsel:

Tony G. Bell (Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP), for the plaintiffs;

C. Richard Jones (Vipond Jones LLP), for the defendant.

This action was heard on January 7, 2004, before Kent, J., of the Alberta Court of Queen's Bench, Judicial District of Calgary, who delivered the following judgment on January 29, 2004.