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Showing posts from April, 2023

A General Tort of Harassment in Alberta - An Impactful New Chapter in the Kevin J. Johnston Saga

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 There's been an ongoing controversy in law as to whether courts should recognize a new common law tort of harassment. The tension is clear: There clearly are  scenarios where a person's conduct doesn't fit into any established tort categories, but is sufficiently wrong and injurious that it seems fair to hold the perpetrator accountable; but on the other hand, harassment as a concept is extraordinarily broad, basically encompassing any unwelcome behaviour, so how do you craft such a tort in a way that doesn't create a floodgates of neighbour disputes and family drama getting litigated in the courts? Recently, the Alberta Court of King's Bench concluded that such a tort exists , and that Kevin J. Johnston - a controversial figure with many legal troubles - committed it against an AHS employee. (For those who haven't heard of KJJ...lucky you. I've known about him for quite a few years, ever since he and his 'Mississauga Gazette' actively opposed the b