Tuesday, January 30, 2024, Vaccine Choice Canada was in Court for what should have been a hearing on a Motion to Strike (or throw out) their July 6, 2020 lawsuit. The hearing did briefly take place, but had to be adjourned right away.
Due to a conflict of interest, Justice Dow had to recuse himself. It turns out that he had practiced law with one of the Defendants, Christine Elliott, and he knew her personally. He said that he considered her a friend. For obvious reasons, it wouldn’t be viewed as impartial if he were to hear the Motion.
As an aside, Justice Dow struck the 2022 suit against the LSO, for failing to state a cause of action, and failure to properly plead facts or particulars. He did allow a rewrite though.
New dates have been scheduled for May 1st and 2nd of 2025 for VCC.
It doesn’t help that so many Defendants were sued, with different law firms getting involved. Nor does it help that the Respondent (Plaintiff) attorney insisted on having 2 days to hear this Motion. The sheer length and incoherence of the Statement of Claim adds to the troubles. All of this makes scheduling difficult to achieve.
The Defendants filed 5 separate Motions to Strike, on the grounds that the 191 page claim was prolix, argumentative, not properly pleaded, frivolous, vexatious, an abuse of process, sought countless remedies (even against non-parties), and was in general, impossible to respond to. They also borrowed the term “bad beyond argument”, which became infamous after the Action4Canada and Adelberg (Federal) rulings. As despicable as various Governments have been, their criticisms of the filings were spot on.
Why are we just hearing about it now? That’s because the case hasn’t gone anywhere in the 3 1/2 years since it was filed. No Application for Injunction for mask mandates was ever filed, despite promising to do so in September 2020. No Application was filed regarding “vaccine” mandates, despite their sweeping range in 2021. Donors to this case got nothing of value for their money.
Critiques from 2021 and 2022 seem to have aged very well.
Some immediate problems include:
Rule 25.06 of Civil Procedure for Ontario lays out how Claims are supposed to be drafted. Pleadings have to lay out the facts alleged, they must have specifics (particulars), allegations in law have to be supported by facts, etc… Moreover, facts have to be made against each Defendant or Respondent.
Although the Responding Plaintiffs are asking for Leave (permission) to file an amended version, the written arguments deny that there are any problems with the current version. As outlined repeatedly, the Claim fails to comply with the fundamentals of Rule 25.06.
It’s not the role of the Court to repeatedly provide basic assistance to seasoned counsel. Justice Ross did so in Vancouver, but that shouldn’t be needed. Yes, self-represented lay litigants often get some help, but there is the assumption that licensed lawyers should be competent. Perhaps that is misplaced.
This case was filed on July 6, 2020, and sat idly until the first appearance on January 17, 2023. This is some 2 1/2 years later. And even that was just to set dates for a Motion to Strike. There’s no Trial in the foreseeable future. No depositions have taken place. Nothing has happened to advance the case in any way.
Just to clarify, Vaccine actually has 2 separate lawsuits filed with the Ontario Superior Court. There is a 2019 case that few people will remember since it’s dropped off the radar. Both could be thrown out for this reason.
The Defendants in this case are asking that it be thrown out for “mootness”, claiming that the orders in question have lapsed long ago, and are no longer relevant. Nearly every measure lapsed in 2022, and we are now into 2024. Of course, the lack of interest in advancing the suit connects directly.
Back in December, Justice Chalmers threw out a defamation lawsuit under Ontario’s anti-SLAPP laws. He ruled that the suit was brought to derail a complaint filed with the Law Society of Ontario, LSO, and to intimidate members of the public from bringing similar complaints. This is completely illegal.
To be clear, there are 3 separate but related suits: the Toews/CSASPP one, as well as the 2022 and 2023 ones against the LSO.
For reference: David Grant Isaac was disbarred by the LSO in November 2022. He sued more than 1 individual who had commenced LSO complaints against him. It was commented that he refuses to respect the “governing rules” of the profession. The VCC/A4C lawyer not only did this, but sued the LSO itself, twice. Ted and Tanya should be advising donors that his career is (at best) uncertain. Then again, they participated in all of this.
And that leads to the next point…
Even if Vaccine Choice were to hire a competent lawyer, who wrote a proper Statement of Claim — tomorrow — Section 4 of the Limitations Act only gives a 2 year window to file. Any new Claim would presumably be time barred. This applies regardless of the strengths and merits of a new suit. In practical terms, this “venture” has run out the clock on litigants’ ability to sue.
To clarify, Vaccine Choice Canada has 2 cases pending in the ONSC:
1. Vaccine Choice Canada’s 2019 Lawsuit Dormant
Back in October 2019, VCC filed a lawsuit against the Ontario Government challenging requirements to give injections to students. A response was filed, and the case garnered some attention.
But what these people don’t tell you is that the case has been idle for 4 years now. It hasn’t had a single Court appearance since then. There have been no hearings, evidence filed, or obvious attempts to move the case forward.
Ontario Court cases are typically dismissed for delay if they haven’t reached Trial within 5 years, if there isn’t a reasonable explanation. That will happen in October 2024, less than 9 months from now.
2. Vaccine Choice Canada’s 2020 Lawsuit To Get Thrown Out
This is the one which is being addressed in the article.
Before the January 30 session concluded, Justice Dow floated the idea that the Parties see if they can come to some agreement or settlement before 2025. Everyone agreed that they would try to.
However, it’s unclear what such a settlement would look like. The 191 page Claim obviously fails to meet even a basic level of professionalism. It’s incoherent and unintelligible. While getting struck is the most likely outcome, permission might be granted for a rewrite. But at this point, it seems unlikely.
The Vaccine Choice, Action4Canada, Adelberg, Take Action Canada, Police On Guard and CHDC cases are largely duplicates of each other. Action4Canada and Adelberg have already been struck as “bad beyond argument”. The POG and CHDC cases aren’t being pursued any longer.
It’s possible that a “settlement” could be reached where the VCC case is discontinued on a no-cost basis. That sort of thing does happen. Or, counsel could demand more money, and use a denial as an excuse to discontinue. It happened elsewhere. Also, the CBC was removed as a Defendant in this case when they threatened to bring an anti-SLAPP Motion.
In the meantime, expect more requests for donations.
But don’t expect any transparency. In his Affidavit for the CSASPP anti-SLAPP Motion, Kuntz makes it clear that he’s annoyed VCC was being questioned by donors and members about the anti-lockdown suit. Apparently, the plan is to do nothing for years, so that the “litigation strategy” isn’t publicly revealed. See paragraphs 20, 25, and Exhibit “C” on page 18. A cynic might view it as a scam.
Even if the VCC suit survives (mostly) intact in the Spring of 2025, what then? It will have been almost 5 years since it was filed, and still in the preliminary stages. Dismissal for unnecessary delay under Rule 24 is always a possibility.
VACCINE CHOICE CANADA DOCUMENTS (2019 CLAIM):
(1) VCC – Statement Of Claim, October 2019 Lawsuit
(2) VCC – Statement Of Defence, October 2019 Lawsuit
(3) VCC – October 2019 Press Release
VACCINE CHOICE CANADA DOCUMENTS (2020 CLAIM):
(1) VCC – Statement Of Claim Unredacted
(2) VCC – Discontinuance Against CBC
(3) VCC – Discontinuance Against CBC With Cover Letter
(4) VCC – Mercer Statement Of Defense
(5) VCC – Mercer Affidavit Of Service
(6) VCC – Requisition For CPC Motion To Strike
(7) VCC – Notice Of Motion To Strike
(8) VCC – Factum WEC Wajid Ahmed
(9) VCC – Factum Nicola Mercer
(10) VCC – Factum Federal Defendants
(11) VCC – Factum Of Respondent Plaintiffs
Remember, by checking this link, anyone can SEARCH ONLINE FOR FREE to see what’s happening with various cases. Don’t accept the word of anyone here, but check it out for yourselves. Call the Court, or visit in person if that’s a feasible option.
Ontario Superior Court, Civil Branch
330 University – Toronto
330 University Ave.
Toronto ON M5G 1R7
Court file# CV-20-00643451-0000
Civil – Superior Court of Justice
tel. 416-327-5440 (front desk)
Were these placeholder cases designed to go nowhere and block others from filing their own cases? Operation Trust….