It’s a bit like putting the cart before the horse..Lawyers from the beleaguered WE Charity have served libel notice against a Toronto publisher for a podcast that hasn’t even been aired yet, says Blacklock’s Reporter..It was Canadaland who first disclosed payments of six-figure talent fees to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s family..A lawyer for the Kielburger brothers accused Canadaland of a “pastiche of falsehoods” in a podcast..“We are extremely concerned about the expected content of the podcast,” wrote William McDowell, a lawyer for We Charity..“We are concerned not only that you seem intent upon making baseless allegations of fraud and criminality, but also that none of the serious assertions which you intend to make have been presented to our clients for comment.”.Ontario’s Libel And Slander Act requires a notice of libel to be served within six weeks of a plaintiff learning of a specific article or broadcast. The actual lawsuit must be filed within three months..We Charity said the Canadaland podcast alleged the Kielburgers “amassed a personal fortune worth over $30 million,” operated “tax shelters,” “engaged in a fraudulent vaccination scheme in Africa” and “acted in a deceptive manner.”.Canadaland publisher Jesse Brown in 2020 testimony at the Commons finance committee accused We Charity of “misuse of charitable funds” and “fraud and embezzlement within We Charity as alleged by we Charity itself.”.The Kielburgers denied the allegations at the time..“Many falsehoods have circulated about We Charity and those associated with it,” Marc Kielburger told the Commons ethics committee last March 15..“Lies and innuendo have been spread about me, my brother and our families.”.Cabinet in 2020 awarded a $43.5 million grant to We Charity without disclosing conflicts of interest. The Kielburgers at the time said they had not paid any sums to members of the Prime Minister’s family, a claim disproven by invoices disclosed by Canadaland on July 9, 2020..“According to We Charity this was a billing error,” testified Brown..“Our documentation shows that if it was a billing error, it was actually a series of many billing errors.”.Records showed We Charity in fact paid Trudeau’s family $481,751 in gifts, talent fees and expense-paid trips to London and New York..“We should have been, and allow me to say this candidly, more forthright,” Craig Kielburger told the Commons finance committee July 28, 2020..Canadaland also revealed We Charity hired then-Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s daughter out of college. Investigations determined Morneau and Craig Kielburger were friends who exchanged phone calls and emails, and that We Charity covered $41,366 in expenses to host the Morneau family at resorts in Ecuador and Kenya..Morneau resigned on August 17, 2020.
