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Cost Award in Blog Defamation Case
In Baglow v. Smith, 2011 ONSC 5131, a decision by the Superior Court of Ontario released on August 30, 2011, Annis J. dismissed an action for defamation by way of a summary judgment (which was covered in Volume 10, Issue 3 of this newsletter). Justice Annis has made a costs decision on this case, which was published on October 27, 2011. In his judgment, Annis J. awarded defendants their costs, but reduced the award to fifty percent of the costs claimed.
Annis J. rejected the plaintiff’s argument for awarding no costs. The plaintiffs had argued against an award of costs on the ground that the question of defamation on blogs was a novel issue, giving rise to a public interest ground for not awarding costs to the defendants. Annis J. rejected this argument, pointing out that not all cases which raise a novel issue will lead to an award of no cost.
However, Annis J. was willing to accept the plaintiff’s argument about the novelty and relative public importance of the issue of defamation on Internet blogs. This was mainly because the court was concerned about the ubiquity of blogging activities and the nature of their medium. On the other hand, Annis J. was of the view that the matter before the court was essentially a case of parties pursuing their private interests, despite the added dimension of an issue of public interest. On this basis, the court reduced defendants’ award to half the fees they had claimed.
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