Efforts by the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation to change the location of a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by mentee Cherry Smiley are an attempt to make the alleged victim drop her case, said her lawyer. .“They’ve been trying to move this case to Montreal for years — I’ve never seen an organization fight this hard to contest jurisdiction,” said Smiley’s lawyer Kathryn Marshall in a Tuesday interview with the National Post. .“It might very well end her case and they know that — that’s as big part of why I think they’re doing what they’re doing, and I think it’s disgusting.”.The hearing — carried out by Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court Justice Peter Browne — centred around her alleging she was sexually assaulted by former Northwest Territories premier and her mentor Stephen Kakfwi. .This case was filed in a British Columbia court in 2021. The Trudeau Foundation has not filed a statement of defence, but it has filed numerous motions requesting dismissals and location changes. .Trudeau Foundation lawyers argued the case should be dismissed because a Vancouver court had no authority to rule on a matter which took place in Newfoundland, particularly one about a Quebec-based organization. .A motion filed by its lawyers dismissed it as an inconvenient venue, as it and most of its officials are in Quebec. .Marshall said stark differences between Quebec’s legal system and the rest of Canada would mean Smiley would need to find a new lawyer, incurring further costs. Since it is difficult for a common law anglophone lawyer to do a case in Quebec, she said this is fact which cannot be overlooked. .Smiley was doing her second year of her PhD at Concordia University at the time and was chosen as a Trudeau Foundation scholar. Scholars chosen by it are eligible for a $225,000 scholarship over three years. .Smiley attended a conference where she first met Kakfwi. She was conducting research for her doctorate on male-perpetuated violence against indigenous women. .Her lawsuit alleges a number of disturbing details, including invitations made over dinner to visit Kakfwi at his home in Yellowknife. .After a taxi ride back to their hotel, Smiley said he moved his body close, grabbing and squeezing her upper arm close to her breasts. .The lawsuit alleges he proceeded to hold onto her upper arm for an extended period, rubbing and massaging it. .He allegedly grabbed her again during the conference’s concluding dinner. He repeated his request she visit him in Yellowknife, claiming she could “stay in his spare bedroom.”.Since she required a reference letter to continue as a scholar, the interaction left her intimidated and frightened..Kakfwi’s statement of defence asserted there was no intimidation or sexualness about this interaction, saying he made the same offer to visit him in Yellowknife to a male scholar he was mentoring. He denied rubbing or massaging her arm..Over the past two years of hearings and motions, they agreed the foundation seemed more interested in pushing non-disclosure agreements than investigating her complaints..Kakfwi ended up being removed from its mentorship program. .Browne said the potential for delays are a consideration, but it is not a matter which would derail the process. Marshall responded by saying it would not be an inconsequential factor. .Even if Smiley could afford to find another lawyer to take her case, she said it “would be retraumatizing for her, and I think these are considerations that need to be made in this particular case, because of the uniqueness of the situation.” .Browne reserved his decision. .Marshall said dragging this case out sends a poor message to victims of sexual violence. .“If you take on the system, you could end up being subjected to tactics like the Trudeau Foundation — years of delay, bleeding her financially dry,” she said..This ordeal comes after former governor general David Johnston agreed to answer questions from MPs regarding his involvement with the Trudeau Foundation on Tuesday. .READ MORE: Johnston to testify about Trudeau Foundation involvement.Johnston had been ignoring requests to show up at the Commons Public Accounts Committee and managed to avoid being summoned on June 1. .“I am happy and pleased,” said Conservative MP John Williamson (New Brunswick Southwest, NB).
