Ontario couple 'bullied' by window company over bad reviews awarded $166,000
An Ontario couple sued because they wrote a bad online review about a window company have been awarded more than $166,000 after a judge found they were bullied over it.
The couple purchased 14 windows and a sliding door from Woodbridge, Ont. company Canadian Thermo Windows, which operates under the name Magic Windows, but said they had issues with leaking following the installation.
They wrote three negative online reviews about the window company, in which they described their experience with Canadian Thermo Windows.
After the reviews were posted, the window company asked the couple to delete the negative reviews, but when they refused, Canadian Thermo Windows filed a defamation suit, court documents say.
"The plaintiffs brought this lawsuit to bully the defendants into removing their reviews from the Internet," Ontario Superior Court Justice Fred Myers found in his court ruling on the case.
According to court documents, the lawyer for Canadian Thermo Windows said the company suffered a "dramatic loss of revenue in December 2020" because of the couple's negative reviews.
"They deny that the loss of revenue was caused by the shutdown of Ontario due to the pandemic," Myers wrote.
The couple countered Canadian Thermo Windows' defamation suit by filing a motion under the SLAPP (Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation) provisions.
"The intention of the anti-SLAPP motions is to provide a quick and inexpensive mechanism to end lawsuits being used to stifle public debate on a topic of public interest," Myers wrote.
Myers said in this ruling that Canadian Thermo Windows sought to "control the public narrative" by threatening the couple with a defamation suit.
"The plaintiffs sell their goods to the retail public," Myers said. "Discussion among the consuming public of the quality of the plaintiff’s goods and services is a matter of public interest."
Canadian Thermo Windows was ordered to pay $166,687 to the couple for costs and damages, and the defamation suit was tossed out.
"They were bullied," Lenczner Slaght LLP lawyer Lawrence Thacker, who represented the couple, told CTV News Toronto on Friday. "Because most people who, when faced with that sort of demand, will say 'I don’t want to spend the money to hire a lawyer.'"
"But that defeats the purpose of reviews. What is the function of reviews if any negative review can be wiped out by the person who being reviewed simply by a litigation tactic?"
Derek Knoke, who also represented the couple, said the SLAPP laws worked in this case.
"The legislation was intended to prevent people from using the threat of costs to scare people away," Knoke said. "(Without it) they could just give up, they take down their reviews."
In a statement to CTV News Toronto, lawyers for Canadian Thermo Windows maintain the "statements about their company were untrue."
"As things stand, the court has held that the legislature has removed the right to such a trial and that they must pay the defendants’ enormous legal bill for having asserted that right," the company's lawyers said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
4th Indian national arrested, charged with murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Homicide investigators in B.C. say murder charges have been laid against a fourth Indian national in connection to the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a Surrey gurdwara last year.
'I am angry': Alberta farmers will continue fight over world class motorsport resort
The rolling hills leading to the hamlet of Rosebud are dotted with sprawling farms and cattle pastures -- and a sign sporting a simple message: No Race Track.
Man ticketed after allegedly trespassing again at Drake's Bridle Path mansion to get his bike
A man who tried to access Drake’s Bridle Path mansion earlier this week returned to the property Saturday and was apprehended again for allegedly trespassing, Toronto police say.
Couple randomly attacked, 1 stabbed, by group of teens in Toronto, police say
A man has been transported to hospital after police say he was stabbed in a random attack carried out by a group of teens in Toronto on Friday night.
Millions of Canadians have been exposed to potentially toxic chemicals, and they're not going anywhere
For decades, North Bay, Ontario's water supply has harboured chemicals associated with liver and developmental issues, cancer and complications with pregnancy. It's far from the only city with that problem.
Biden calls Trump 'unhinged,' says 'something snapped' in former president after he lost 2020 U.S. election
U.S. President Joe Biden on Saturday called Donald Trump “clearly unhinged” and claimed that “something snapped” in the former president after he lost the 2020 election.
Wildfire that forced evacuation of Fort Nelson, B.C., caused by tree falling on wires, mayor says
The wildfire that prompted the evacuation of more than 3,000 people near Fort Nelson, B.C., was caused by a tree falling on wires, according to the municipality's mayor.
Switzerland's Nemo wins 68th Eurovision Song Contest
Swiss singer Nemo won the 68th Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night with 'The Code,' an operatic ode to the singer’s journey toward embracing their nongender identity.
IN PICTURES Northern lights dance across the night sky in southern Ont.
From London, to Grand Bend, Collingwood and Guelph, here are some highlights of Friday night and Saturday morning's northern lights display.