A
Financial Lesson On Thinking Before You Post
In
late 2015, a decision was released by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice
that reminded us of the potential financial implications of posting on social
media before we think. With the vast majority of Canadians being visible on
social media in some way, similar court decision are likely to grow in number
as more and more people are hitting ‘Enter’ without thinking of the
ramifications of what they are posting.
Background
Mr.
Kumar started a defamation action against his nephew, Mr. Khurana in relation
to a number of statements that were made about Mr. Kumar both in a Facebook
group and over private message to Mr. Kumar’s daughters. As a result of the
statements, Mr. Kumar testified that his self-esteem had been diminished, he
started seeing a psychologist and psychiatrist, which he had never before done,
and he became withdrawn from his community.
The Decision
The
court ruled in Mr. Kumar’s favour in finding that the statements made by his
nephew met the three part test to establish defamation: (1) that the impugned
words were defamatory, in the sense that they would tend to lower the
plaintiff’s reputation in the eyes of a reasonable person; (2) that the words
in fact referred to the plaintiff, and (3) that the words were published,
meaning that they were communicated to at least one person other than the
plaintiff.[1]
The Award
After
taking into consideration a number of factors, including Mr. Kumar’s position
and standing, the nature and seriousness of the statements, the mode and extent
of publication, the absence of a retraction or apology, the motive of his
nephew and other relevant circumstances, the court award Mr. Kumar $15,000 in general damages and $15,000 in aggravated damages.
The Take-Away
You
should always think before you post, especially when your post is about another
person whose reputation or feelings can be hurt by what you are saying about
them. Not only will you be harming your personal relationships, but you could
be exposing yourself damages in an amount equal to or more than was awarded to
Mr. Kumar. When in doubt ask yourself: would you rather make that comment or
buy a new car?
For
more information on defamation law, contact MDK Business Law.
[1] Kumar v. Khurana, 2015 ONSC 7858 quoting Grant v. Torstar Corp., 2009 SCC 61, [2009] 3 S.C.R. 640,
