A Saskatoon dentist has successfully sued two former employees for $240,000 in damages for a series of negative online reviews they wrote anonymously about his practice.
Queen’s Bench Justice Richard Elson made the decision last month after defendants Paige Harrison and Nia Harrison did not defend against a claim that they defamed Dr. Gary B. Houseman in a series of reviews published on Rate MD and Google Reviews after they were separately dismissed from his practice in 2017.
Kristen Hnatuk, who represented Houseman, said it’s the first case in Saskatchewan where anonymous reviews of a medical professional have been declared to be defamatory.
“I think it’s going to send a message to the general public that you can’t do this,” Hnatuk said. “You can’t hide behind a computer.”
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