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Legislature claims former Speaker can't sue, according to court documents
Province files statement of defence against Chris Collins's lawsuit over handling of harassment complaint
· CBC News · Posted: Oct 05, 2020 2:54 PM AT
In a statement of defence filed in Court of Queen’s Bench, the legislature asks the court to throw out Chris Collins’s claim because its handling of the complaint falls within the legislature’s traditional privilege and immunity from legal action. (Hadeel Ibrahim/CBC)
The New Brunswick Legislature says it can't be sued by former Speaker Chris Collins over how the institution handled a complaint of harassment against him.
In a statement of defence filed in Court of Queen's Bench, the legislature asks the court to throw out Collins's claim because its handling of the complaint falls within the legislature's traditional privilege and immunity from legal action.
Because of the legislature's "exclusive jurisdiction" over how it disciplines its own members and administers its internal business and proceedings, "the court has no jurisdiction" in the case, the filing argues.
Even so, the legislature's statement of defence also says the Collins lawsuit is "frivolous, vexatious and without merit" and should be thrown out.
Collins is also suing former Premier Brian Gallant. The former Speaker is not alleging defamation but breach of employment contract, breach of privacy and abuse of authority.
Harassment complaint
The former Moncton MLA's lawsuit accuses Gallant and his staff of orchestrating the revival of an unfounded harassment complaint against Collins by an unnamed female former employee of the legislature under the then-Speaker's authority.
A 2018 investigation found the complaint was "founded in part" and Collins later offered what he called a "complete and unreserved apology" in front of reporters.
Collins was first elected as Liberal MLA in a by-election in Moncton East in 2007 and was re-elected in 2010 and 2014. When the Liberals took power in 2014 he became Speaker.
According to his statement of claim,
he made comments to the employee that he considered "humorous and
inoffensive" but that were "perceived as inappropriate." He also said 77
of the 80 allegations against him were unfounded.
Collins is also suing former premier Brian Gallant. The
former Speaker is not alleging defamation but breach of employment
contract, breach of privacy and abuse of authority. (CBC)
The legislature says in its statement of defence that its handling of the Collins complaint was "appropriate and balanced the rights" of Collins and the complainant.
But it won't have to litigate the substance of the lawsuit if the court accepts the argument that the legislature can't be sued at all over its internal business--a centuries-old convention intended to protect elected members from interference by the Crown or the courts.
Earlier this year the Ontario Court of Appeal cited the concept when it threw out a lawsuit by Senator Mike Duffy against the Senate over its investigation of his expense claims.
Maxime Faille, one of the lawyers who represented the Senate in the case, says the principle originated centuries ago to protect elected members from arrest or reprisals by the monarch.
"Parliamentary privilege originated from those early growing pains of democracy to protect this cardinal principle of democratic life, which is the separation of powers between the executive and Parliament," he says.
"There's a sphere of activity … that are considered to be the exclusive preserve of Parliament, and within those spheres the executive branch and the courts do not have the authority to interfere."
That includes
how elected members are disciplined for their behaviour, the heart of
the Duffy case. The Ontario appeal court ruled that the Senate
investigation fell within its "established parliamentary privilege to
discipline its members" and the court had no grounds to interfere.
About the Author
Ex-premier Brian Gallant denies targeting career of former Speaker Chris Collins
Gallant and provincial government file joint statement of defence to lawsuit by former Moncton Centre MLA
CBC News · Posted: Jul 03, 2020 4:04 PM AT
Methinks you act just like the lawyer McKee who beat Collins in the 2018 election which i ran in as well Ask yourslf why Mckee is still trying hard to play dumb to this very day. Well anyone lawyer or not can Google their names and mine N'esy Pas?
With him it is always peripheral
Not that i would ever agree with @Lou Bell (Leonard McL) but what exactly did he call you that amounts to slander??
Right! Whatever you said (please decypher the verbal diarrhea). I will convene all my RCMP buddies. We usually smoke pot and play cards on Monday anyways.
Ex-premier Brian Gallant denies targeting career of former Speaker Chris Collins
Gallant and provincial government file joint statement of defence to lawsuit by former Moncton Centre MLA
CBC News · Posted: Jul 03, 2020 4:04 PM AT
Former premier Brian Gallant has said he looked forward to the chance to 'dispel false claims' made in the allegations against him. (CBC)
Former Liberal premier Brian Gallant denies he abused the power of his office and engaged in unlawful conduct to hurt the career of the former Speaker of the New Brunswick legislature Chris Collins.
Gallant and the provincial government filed their joint statement of defence with the Court of Queen's Bench in Fredericton Friday to the lawsuit by Collins in May.
Collins, the former Liberal MLA for Moncton Centre, alleges he was the victim of harassment charges spurred on by Gallant's desire to punish him for being too independent.
In his statement of claim, Collins said allegations by a staffer he calls Jane Doe were originally dismissed by Gallant in 2016 as unfounded.
But he alleges that after he refused to do Gallant's bidding by letting a Liberal motion be debated in the legislature in February or March 2018, the accusation was revived and publicized to force him out.
Collins was suspended as Speaker, pending an independent investigation, which meant he wasn't allowed to run as a candidate for the Liberals in his riding in that fall's provincial election. He ran as an independent and lost to Rob McKee.
Collins is suing for breach of employment contract, breach of privacy and abuse of authority. None of the allegations have been proven in court.
The province and Gallant, in their statement of defence, ask for the court action to be dismissed with costs.
"As to the whole of the statement of claim, the province and Mr. Gallant say that at all material times the province and/or Mr. Gallant acted lawfully, appropriately, in the public's best interest and in consultation with members of the Executive Council and senior government officials," the document states.
Chris Collins apologized in 2018 at the foot of the legislature with his wife, Lisette Richard, standing behind him, for something he said to a former employee of the legislature, which was deemed to be a partial violation of sexual harassment rules. (Hadeel Ibrahim/CBC)
"Any statements made, or actions taken by Mr. Gallant, public or otherwise, were true and/or made in relation to a matter of public interest and, in the alternative, are protected by the principles of qualified privilege and/or fair comment."
The legislative assembly is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit. It has not yet filed a statement of defence.
A date for the case to be heard in court has not yet been set.
Didn't encourage complainant to file
In the statement of defence, Gallant denies being aware of the woman's allegations against Collins in 2016.
He also denies that he had a close personal relationship with the woman, who has never been identified publicly, or that he encouraged "Ms. Doe" to file the complaint against Collins in 2018.
Gallant contends he has never seen the complaint or the investigative report.
77 of 80 allegations deemed unfounded
The legislative administration committee, made up of MLAs from all parties, has said the investigation by Leslie H. MacLeod, an adjunct professor at Osgoode Law School, concluded the allegations were "founded in part."
In July 2018, Collins offered a "complete and unreserved" public apology, though he said the "overwhelming majority" of the allegations against him had been deemed unfounded.
He said he had made comments to the employee that he considered "humorous and inoffensive" but that were "perceived as inappropriate."
According to his statement of claim, 77 of 80 allegations were deemed unfounded, while two instances of abuse of authority and one of harassment were deemed to have violated the harassment policy.
The investigation concluded the harassment allegation was founded "on the balance of probabilities," the court document states.
Quit party of own volition
Although Collins blames Gallant's actions for his 2018 election loss, the statement of defence notes Collins was able to "fully participate" in the general election as a candidate for Moncton Centre,
In addition, he quit the Liberal Party and/or the Liberal caucus prior to the election of his own volition, it states. He had been suspended only pending the outcome of the independent investigation.
"Had the plaintiff not quit and/or there had been no suspension, there was no guarantee that the plaintiff would have been the Liberal candidate for Moncton Centre, or any other riding, as the party had an open nomination policy for the general election."
With files from Jacques Poitras
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