Accused of Partying Too Hearty at Law Firm Event, Partner Sues 2 Associates Who Complained for $2.3M
Accused of inappropriate conduct at an alcohol-fueled law firm event at a Toronto nightclub, a partner at a well-known labor and employment boutique has sued the two associates who complained internally at Mathews Dinsdale & Clarke but not the Canadian law firm itself.
By filing suit for defamation and intentional interference with economic relations, partner David Cowling apparently hopes for vindication as well as $2.3 million in damages, reports the Financial Post. The claims made by the two associates, who have both left the firm, were widely discussed in the legal community, according to Cowling, 43.
“I have never seen anything like this before, where you see an associate get sued by a partner for libel over a workplace matter,” says attorney Paul Schabas, who is representing ex-associate Adrian Jakibchuk. “It’s an extraordinary situation and very distressing.”
Jakibchuk, who had been a fourth-year lawyer, and the other ex-associate, second-year Sarah Diebel, contend in court filings that what they said is true and that they had a qualified privilege to report sexual harassment, the article says.
Meanwhile, the firm has reportedly decided not to hold similar events in the future. The January 2009 party at issue in the case followed a dinner for participants in the firm’s annual labor law moot court competition for law students. While the dinner will still be held, the after-dinner party will not.
For more details about the allegations being made on both sides, read the full article.
