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Nygard wins round 1 against CBC in court
Fashion mogul alleges CBC conspired with enemies against him
Friday, June 3, 2011 Peter Nygard has won the latest skirmish in his ongoing legal battle with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

On Friday, the Manitoba Court of Queen’s Bench upheld a lower court’s decision, rejecting an attempt by the CBC to have Nygard International’s civil suit quashed on the grounds it was frivolous and constituted an abuse of process.

The case is one of many launched by the fashion mogul relating to the state broadcaster’s April 2010 airing of Larger Than Life, a Fifth Estate documentary that featured former employees speaking critically of Nygard.

Launched a year before the documentary aired, the company claims the CBC induced and conspired with Nygard employees to breach confidentiality agreements they had signed with the fashion company in the making of the documentary. Others named in the suit are CBC employees Tim Sawa, David Studer, Patrick Prowse, and Dana Neal.

In upholding the October 22 decision, Judge Diana Cameron said the CBC was essentially arguing “for constitutional immunity from any litigation that might implicate their manner of gathering and disseminating information.”

“Such a claim cannot be sustained under a blanket assertion of freedom of expression,” Cameron wrote.

Nygard officials were pleased with the court’s decision.

“Justice Cameron has agreed with the decision of Master Lee that freedom of expression exercised by the media is not without restrictions or limitation,” said Nygard spokeswoman Sharon Clarke. “Nygard International will continue to pursue its lawsuit against CBC for the recovery of substantial damages resulting from the illegal conduct of CBC employees.”

A CBC spokesman declined comment. But the broadcaster’s lawyer, Robert Tapper, played down the decision.

“This is Round 1 of a 12-round battle. In fact, it’s not even Round 1 yet,” said Tapper.

Tapper believes the suit was launched by Nygard to dissuade the public broadcaster from ever airing the documentary, referring to the tactic as “libel chill.”

Defamatory Libel

In April, a private criminal prosecution for defamatory libel was launched by Nygard officials against CBC and three of its employees — Sawa, Morris Karp, and Fifth Estate host Bob McKeown — relating to the documentary.

A civil suit was hatched around the same time in the Bahamas, where Nygard lives at his posh resort for much of the year. Lawyers for Nygard allege the CBC and others — including Nygard’s former neighbour, billionaire Louis Bacon — conspired to tarnish his name in an effort to have his permanent resident status in that country revoked.

A Puzzling Case

The ongoing saga of Peter Nygard’s dispute with the CBC is part soap opera, part spy thriller. We piece it together.

What They're Arguing Over

CBC aired a Fifth Estate documentary critical of Nygard on April 9, 2010, based on interviews with ex-employees. The program remains available for viewing on CBC’s website.

What's The Problem?

Nygard officials have many beefs, but here are the big two:

1. Nygard says employees signed confidentiality agreements upon being hired, which the company says means they shouldn’t have talked to the CBC. The company also contends the CBC induced these employees to break their legal agreements. This is the basis of the Winnipeg-based civil suit.

2. Nygard officials allege the CBC conspired with enemies of Nygard to discredit him. Those people include billionaire Louis Bacon, Nygard’s former neighbour in Lyford Cay.

The Con Artists

Allan and Michelle May, who were featured prominently in the documentary, have been convicted of fraud multiple times — including less than a year before the program went to air. Allan was recently thrown in jail after failing to pay back US$189,000 they had defrauded. An arrest warrant remains outstanding for his wife Michelle.

The Mole

Nygard hired former Scotland Yard detective Alick Morrison last summer to pose as a hired hand of one of Nygard’s competitors in an effort to infiltrate the alleged group of conspirators in the Bahamas, where the fashion mogul holds permanent residency.

The Dupe

Morrison hired and befriended ex-FBI agent Jerry Forrester, who worked with the CBC on the documentary. Forrester freely discussed how he and others collaborated with the CBC, hopeful Nygard’s permanent residency would eventually be revoked and he’d be forced to leave the country.

Other Cases

In addition to the Winnipeg-based civil suit, suits have been filed by Nygard against the CBC and others in New York, Los Angeles, and the Bahamas relating to the documentary. A direct criminal prosecution for defamatory libel was also launched in Winnipeg in April against the broadcaster and three of its employees — including Fifth Estate host Bob McKeown.