News + Insights

Robert Stellick is featured in this morning's Globe and Mail, discussing his and Simon Bieber's defence of two realtors sued by the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board ("TRREB"), in an action that their clients maintain is an improper SLAPP suit.

SLAPP is an acronym for "strategic lawsuits against public participation", which are legal proceedings brought by individuals, corporations, or others to intimidate and silence critics by forcing them into legal battles that would be extremely costly and time-consuming to fight. In 2005, Ontario legislated amendments to its Courts of Justice Act, promising a swift legal avenue for the summary dismissal of such SLAPP proceedings (so-called "Anti-SLAPP" laws).

Today's article, titled "Real estate board hits back at Wellness program dissidents", describes the ongoing litigation, which centers on TRREB's claims against two individual realtors over their organization of opposition to the introduction of a mandatory insurance and benefits plan for realtors across Ontario. The article outlines TRREB's history of high-profile court battles with its own members and the defendants' position that this claim against them is a deliberate effort to intimidate and silence realtors across Ontario. 

Robert and Simon continue to defend these individual realtors in this important case. The full article can be accessed here.