Trial Coverage: Rebel News v. David Lametti over possible Emergencies Act coverup
Rebel News launched a lawsuit against David Lametti, the former justice minister in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government who was responsible for invoking the Emergencies Act in response to the Freedom Convoy protest.
That protest, which occurred in early 2022, was opposed to Canada's vaccine mandates and public health restrictions. A Federal Court justice recently found the Trudeau Liberals violated Canadians' rights by invoking the country's strongest national security against the protest.
Following that decision, Lametti, who was removed from Trudeau's cabinet in a July 2023 reshuffle, resigned from his position as a member of Parliament and promptly deleted his social media account on X, formerly Twitter.
But Rebel News is suing the former justice minister over a potential coverup of communications made during his crucial tenure in Trudeau's cabinet. You can read our full lawsuit at StopTheCoverup.com.
Today, the case is entering the first stages as it is brought before a judge who will determine the next steps. Rebel News boss Ezra Levant is providing live updates as the hearing unfolds.
Follow along below:
Typically case management hearings are of an administrative/scheduling nature. I expect the judge today will give us and the government's lawyers an expedited schedule for the hearing in this matter -- including when each side much provide various documents to each other.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
The judge says it's only a case management conference -- not a substantive hearing. The judge says he hasn't had a chance to read the pleadings, so he asks Chad Williamson for a summary of the case.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad says he filed everything on Saturday and served the lawsuit on the government on Sunday.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad tells the judge that the government has just filed and served on us an affidavit saying Lametti has revived the Twitter account he had deleted.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: because Lametti has already done the wrong thing by deleting the account, we need an actual court order forbidding him from doing so again.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: until this lawsuit was commenced, the Twitter account was slated for destruction and annihilation.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: in Guilbeault's case, for two years the government took the position that his government account was his "personal" account for him to do with as he liked. (I.E. they can't be trusted not to delete public records.)
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: without an order, he could simply deactivate his account tomorrow.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: we worked all weekend to give the government the entire case as fast as possible.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: we're happy to have various forms of the order preserving records until such time as all parties have a chance to properly respond.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad concludes and invites the judge to ask him any questions and thanks the judge for accommodating him on short notice.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Justice Fothergill: the law applies to ministerial records. Does this apply to MPs even if they're not in cabinet anymore?
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Chad: Lametti's Twitter account goes back to when he was a government minister!
Scott Nicol, co-counsel with Chad, tells the judge: the question for today is whether or not we need an urgent hearing -- as opposed to diving into the substance of the hearing.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
The judge is asking what is an MP's account and what is a "government" account. Scott Nicol (one of our lawyers) says that the grey checkmark identifies the account as a government account.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Boyd says: because they reactivated it, the rationale for urgency "has evaporated". Boyd says "it's not the official Twitter account for the minister of justice".
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Really? It has a grey government checkmark, even now.
Justice Fothergill asks if Lametti has any ongoing obligations to preserve records, even though he's no longer the minister. Boyd can't answer. Judge sounds surprised and says, "so from your perspective it's not entirely clear?"
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Boyd: that's open for the court to decide. I'm not here to set out the government's position today.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Boyd: there is no evidence of risk that these documents would no longer be available within the next month -- even if it were deactivated again, it would be available for 30 days.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Boyd says that David Lametti will hire a lawyer, and Lametti and the government will propose a negotiated settlement on this! A Consent Order would be like a plea deal -- where Lametti agrees to change his conduct voluntarily.
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
Hearing concluded!
— Ezra Levant 🍁🚛 (@ezralevant) January 29, 2024
I think one thing is clear -- Lametti won't be allowed to get away with this. Either he signs a Consent Order and agrees not to destroy documents. Or there will be a hearing.
We're winning, my friends. Please help, at https://t.co/RCqlSFZcmq
