slapp suits
McGill Law Rountable - strategic lawsuits against public participation
Location
SLAPPs, Écosociété, freedom of expression, defamation, judicial procedure: this round table will focus on Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation and Quebec’s legislative response seen in the new anti-SLAPP provisions incorporated into the Code of Civil Procedure in 2009. This event is an opportunity for the university and the broader community to reflect on the meaning of freedom of expression.
What to do if someone SLAPPs you
There is a reason why Hollywood legal thrillers always cast the big company as the defendant and never the plaintiff in lawsuits: there is nothing romantic about being sued by a company with deep pockets. There are no opportunities to bang the table and demand the truth; no vindication through articulate and impassioned speeches to the court; and most importantly for an activist, no chance of a victory on the substantive issue that instigated the lawsuit in the first place. In most cases, victory for a defendant in a strategic lawsuit against public participation (or a "SLAPP" as they are commonly known) is pyrrhic: a no cost settlement that leaves you no further ahead and much poorer than when you began.
