Libel cases
According to Levant, after the HRC cases against him were dismissed, "the most aggressive members of the human rights industry proceeded to punish [him] by filing over 20 law society complaints and five defamation suits against [him]. ... the point of all these lawsuits [is] just to bury [him] in an avalanche of paperwork and bills, to get [him] to shut up. So far, it ain't working."[30]
Ron Ghitter
In 1998, Levant wrote a Reform Party fundraising letter in which he criticized Alberta Progressive Conservative Senator Ron Ghitter. Ghitter sued for defamation and in 2000, Canadian Alliance MP Rob Anders and Levant admitted liability and issued a formal apology and undisclosed damages to settle the suit.[31][32] The apology stated, "Our attack on Senator Ghitter was unfounded and we now admit having defamed Senator Ghitter. We further acknowledge that some of our statements were based on facts that were false."[33]
George Soros
In September 2010, Levant wrote a column for Sun Media accusing George Soros of funding avaaz.org, a group lobbying to stop Sun Media being granted a license for Sun TV News Channel, and strongly attacking Soros's character and history by alleging that as a child he collaborated with the Nazis.[34] Soros threatened to sue Sun Media for libel[34] and on September 18, Sun Media issued a retraction and apology to Soros.[35]
Giacomo Vigna
On 18 November 2010 and 26 January 2011, the Ontario Superior Court ruled that Levant was to pay Giacomo Vigna, a Canadian Human Rights Commission lawyer, $25,000 and $32,500, respectively. "Levant accused Vigna of lying to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal, tampering with evidence, and suggested he'd been fired," the National Post reports. Justice Robert Smith ruled that Levant 'spoke in reckless disregard of the truth and for an ulterior purpose of denormalizing the Human Rights Commission across Canada which makes his statements malicious in that sense.'"[36] At the 2010 hearing, Levant was ordered to pay $25,000 to Vigna and to remove the libellous materials from his blog.[37] At the subsequent hearing, Vigna argued for more compensation to cover his lawyers' fees which were $26,000, and Levant was ordered to pay an additional $32,500. In total, Levant has been ordered to pay Vigna a total of $57,000 for libel.[36]
Khurrum Awan
Ezra Levant was successfully sued for libel by lawyer Khurrum Awan.[38] According to his statement of claim and records of court proceedings, Awan claimed that Levant's blog writings had repeatedly described him as being: "Khurrum Awan the liar", "stupid, a "fool", "serial, malicious, money-grubbing liar", "unequivocally implied that he was an anti-Semite and perjurer".[39] Awan states that Levant also stated that Awan believes it is permissible to lie to further the cause of Islam.[39] Awan claimed that as a result, he has "suffered mental distress, humiliation and loss of professional reputation." In his statement of defence, Levant replied that "any damage to Mr. Awan’s reputation was self-inflicted."[40] Awan, who declined comment on the case, will seek $100K[38] Levant also declined comment but in an email described Awan as a "master of lawfare" who was engaged in "an exceedingly political lawsuit."[39]
Levant launched a website "Stand With Ezra" to support and fundraise for his defence, claiming that this and other lawsuits against him are affronts to Charter rights to free expression, describing them as "nuisance” suits and politically motivated attempt to silence him which “add to the price of freedom in Canada.”[41]
However, Levant himself sued a Calgary alternative newspaper and conservative activist Merle Terlesky for $100,000 jointly for publishing a letter by Terlesky which questioned Levant's spending as publisher of the Western Standard and alleged that "Ezra looks for any opportunity to poke a Muslim in the eye.”[41] Levant's statement of claim said that he “has been lowered in the estimation of right-thinking members of society generally, and has been seriously injured in his credit, character and reputation and has been brought into public scandal, odium and contempt, and has suffered damages,” including damage to his “reputation as an entrepreneur.” [41] The suit was settled by an apology and paying Levant $5,000.[41] Levant distinguished the two suits by saying that Terlesky made “a false, factual claim” and Levant's motivation in suing was not political. “It wasn’t an attempt to stop him from doing what he does as a living or a sideline. It was to correct a potentially devastating, bizarrely specific allegation of fraud on my part.”[41]
In her judgment against Levant, Judge Wendy Matheson of Ontario Superior Court ruled there is "ample evidence before me demonstrating express malice on the part of [Mr. Levant]", especially the fact he "did little or no fact-checking regarding the posts complained of, either before or after their publication". She found "that [Mr. Levant's] dominant motive in these blog posts was ill will, and that his repeated failure to take even basic steps to check his facts showed a reckless disregard for the truth". Levant "ought to have been aware of the serious ramifications of his words on the reputation of this law student. Yet, at trial, he repeatedly tried to minimize his mistakes and his lack of diligence." The judge ordered Levant to remove the posts from his website within 15 days and pay Mr. Awan $50,000 in general damages plus $30,000 in aggravated damages.[42]
The Ontario Court of Appeal dismissed Levant's appeal of the judgment on December 22, 2016, and ordered him to pay a further $15,000 in costs with all three judges on the panel ruling unanimously against Levant.[43]
Richard Warman
Lawyer Richard Warman filed suit against Levant in 2008 as well as Kathy Shaidle, Kate McMillan of Small Dead Animals and several other conservative bloggers for libel over statements made about Warman on Free Dominion.[44] Levant says this "lawsuit isn't logical, or serious. It's a nuisance suit."[45]
On June 10, 2015, Levant, Shaidle and McMillan settled with Warman and published retractions and apologies. Levant's apology was posted on his website and read:
In the past, I have made certain derogatory statements and comments about Mr. Richard Warman on January 20, 23 and 28, 2008 and November 10, 2008. Those statements and comments were made on my website at
Ezra Levant.
Those statements and comments attacked the personal and professional reputation of Mr. Richard Warman. I retract and apologize to Mr. Warman for those statements and comments without reservation. In particular, in one of my website posts, I alleged that Mr. Richard Warman had posted a bigoted attack on the Internet against Senator Anne Cools. I have no evidence that this is true and I retract it and apologize to Mr. Warman for it without reservation.
– Signed Ezra Levant [46]
Warren Kinsella
Levant is also being sued by Canadian political strategist Warren Kinsella for libel with $5,000,000 being sought in damages. Levant has called Kinsella's suit "laughable".[47]
Twitter
Levant filed lawsuits, in June 2016, against Twitter users Adam Stirling and Robert Day for tweeting comments that alleged that not all money raised by Rebel Media's crowdfunding campaign for victims of the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire were going to the Canadian Red Cross, as Levant had promised, and for claiming Levant had lied by promising that donors would be issued with tax receipts. Levant is suing Day and Stirling individually for $95,000 in damages each.[48][49]
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
A statement of claim for defamation was filed against Levant by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) on December 22, 2016. The group alleges that Levant defamed them by comparing them to Nazis and calling them "Jew-baiters" over their campaign in support of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel due to that country's treatment of Palestinians. CJPME is seeking $100,000 in damages and $20,000 for punitive or exemplary damages. In its statement of claim, CJPME asserts that BDS "is not a criticism or attack on Jewish people or upon any person because of their religion or ethnicity", and that the group "decries hatred, violence, racism and religious targeting of Jewish people in Canada and throughout the world".[50]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezra_Levant#Giacomo_Vigna
Faith J. Goldy ن
