Shortly before an anti-SLAPP Motion was to be heard in a Toronto Court, the Plaintiff and Defendants agreed to drop the case. The hearing had been scheduled for October 2nd, 2024.
In March 2021, Kulvinder Gill sued the University of Ottawa, and one of its professors, Amir Attaran, over comments made on Twitter. The Statement of Claim demanded $7 million in addition to costs. And what did the tweets say?
This idiot is a doctor in Ontario. Sort of a female version of Dr. Scott Atlas.
Looks like the flying monkeys are out today for Dr. Gill.
Research shows the Russian military intelligence (the GRU) are behind the anti-science COVID conspiracy social media.
So with love from Canada.
That’s right. Gill sued for millions because she was called an “idiot” on Twitter, and she was apparently trolled about Russian intelligence. Given that Ontario has strong anti-SLAPP laws, the university filed a Motion to have the lawsuit thrown out.
This isn’t Gill’s first rodeo when it comes to suing people for defamation. In February 2022, a $12.75 million case she and Ashvinder Lamba filed was thrown out, with $1.1 million in costs ordered. An Appeal was dismissed as well. Gill and Lamba then (separately) sued their former counsel.
| DETAIL | FIRST SUIT | SECOND SUIT |
|---|---|---|
| Filed | December 2020 | March 2021 |
| Plaintiffs | Gill & Lamba | Gill only |
| Defendants | 23 | 2 |
| Value | $12.75 million | $7 million |
| Outcome | Dismissed | Dropped |
| Appealed? | Yes, and lost | N/A |
Gill had new counsel for this case, who apparently advised her that she’d inevitably lose again if this anti-SLAPP Motion was heard.
Oddly though, Gill did file a 300 page Motion Record to defend against the ongoing Motion. It’s not clear why, as the content was almost entirely irrelevant. The issue wasn’t whether Gill’s views on public health were correct or not, but whether she can silence people who disagree with her. She still doesn’t seem to understand that.
Back in 2020, Gill was one of a limited number of people speaking up against medical martial law. For that, she does deserve respect. Most doctors simply “bent the knee” when they were told to. She didn’t, and it was commendable.
However, it’s squandered by using the legal system as a weapon to silence people who annoy her.
DOCUMENTS
(1) Gill-Attaran Statement Of Claim
(2) Gill Attaran Affidavit Of Service
(3) Gill-Attaran Notice Of Intent
(4) Gill-Attaran Counsel Abandons Plaintiff
(5) Gill-Attaran Plaintiff Responding Motion Record
(6) Gill-Attaran Full And Final Release
OTHER
(1) https://www.ontario.ca/page/search-court-cases-online
(2) https://www.canlii.org/en/on/laws/stat/rso-1990-c-c43/latest/#sec137.1_smooth
(3) https://www.canlii.org/en/on/onsc/doc/2022/2022onsc1279/2022onsc1279.html
(4) https://www.canlii.org/en/on/onsc/doc/2022/2022onsc6169/2022onsc6169.html
(5) https://www.canlii.org/en/on/laws/stat/rso-1990-c-l12/latest/rso-1990-c-l12.html
(6) https://canucklaw.ca/wp-content/uploads/Notice-of-Appeal-and-Appellants-Certificate-Gill-2.pdf