Bid to gag Toronto Life profile story falls flat
Michael Elder fails in attempt to stop magazine from publishing, intends to pursue libel action
Businessman and Toronto scion Michael Elder was so sure an upcoming Toronto Life story would be damaging to his reputation that he took the rare step of seeking an injunction to stop the magazine from publishing it.
In a decision signalling the very high threshold that must be met to halt publication, Superior Court Justice Stephen Firestone dismissed the motion for an injunction on Monday and awarded the magazine $17,000 in costs.
Elder is now preparing to sue the magazine for at least $100 million, his lawyer, Paul Robson, told the Star on Tuesday.
The May edition of the magazine will hit newsstands as planned on Thursday. Had the injunction been granted, Toronto Life estimated the lost revenue to be “at least $475,000,” according to court documents.
“As you can imagine, if the subject of any article got wind that someone was reporting on them and then got the feeling that it might not be favourable, it would be a very bad thing for freedom of expression if a subject could preemptively halt publication,” Toronto Life editor-in-chief Sarah Fulford told the Star.
“Providing we are responsible and we do our due diligence, it’s important we have the opportunity to publish what we want to publish, what is important to publish, without an injunction.”
Robson called the piece “yellow journalism that is indefensible” and said his client intends to pursue his libel action against the magazine.
“I have great respect for both His Honour and the counsel for Toronto Life, however, I think that His Honour’s decision is incorrect, for reasons that will become abundantly clear, and we’re going to appeal,” he told the Star.
Titled “The Charming Mr. Elder,” the story, by Michael Posner, delves into Elder’s efforts to raise millions of dollars to develop a tablet-like device called the Quillmate, as well as an ongoing $12-million lawsuit filed against him by a group of investors in the project.
Robson said Elder is seeking at least $100 million from Toronto Life because of the high cost of Quillmate’s rollout.
Elder filed the motion before reading the article, following a series of email exchanges with Posner. At the hearing Monday, Firestone asked Toronto Life to hand over a copy of the feature, said the magazine’s lawyer, Peter Jacobsen.
The article was given to Elder on an undertaking basis, so neither he nor his lawyer is able to discuss it specifically until Thursday, Robson said.
The article mentions a who’s who of Toronto’s corporate elite who supposedly invested in the Quillmate over the years, including Smoothwater Capital Corp. chairman Garfield Mitchell (nephew of businessman Galen Weston), Bay Street HR president Deborah Robinson and Rogers Communications vice-president David Robinson.
“The story of Michael Elder is a disaster epic, a long trail of broken promises and betrayed trusts, depleted bank accounts, strained marriages and strained friendships,” reads the article.
Posner said he “absolutely” stands by the story, as it’s mostly based on court documents. He said many people refused to speak to him because they signed nondisclosure agreements. His interactions with Elder were all over email. Elder told Posner the allegations against him were “incorrect and non-sense (sic),” according to the story.
Elder is a member of a wealthy and well-connected Toronto family. His father, Jim, is a famous gold-medal winning equestrian, having competed at six Olympic Games. The younger Elder followed in his father’s footsteps, racing in junior equestrian events.
“I’ve started to ride. My goal is to become an international rider. But it costs money,” a17-year-old Elder told the Star in an August 1976 story on children of local leaders. “Later, I want to get into some business, any business that’ll make me money.”
The genesis of the Quillmate dates to 2002, when Elder acquired the U.S. patent rights, long before the iPad came into existence, according to the Toronto Life article.
“His game plan was simple,” Posner writes, “Hire some tech gurus, manufacture in China, and voilà, he’d have the next BlackBerry. In one blow, Elder could gain wealth, pay off creditors, appease investors and redeem his name.”
But 13 years later, the Quillmate is still not on the market. What has happened in that period of time is a series of lawsuits filed against Elder for unpaid salaries and damages claimed by investors, according to the article.
The list of plaintiffs compiled by Posner includes: Garfield Mitchell; the group of investors claiming $12 million in an ongoing suit; and former girlfriend Suzanne Piercey.
Even law firms that defended Elder in other lawsuits are suing him for unpaid legal fees, according to the article.
In the claim that accompanied his notice of action filed in court, Elder maintains that the Quillmate will be a reality.
“The plaintiff is on the verge of completing a $20 million (USD) financing which will facilitate the global development of Quillmate,” reads the document.
It’s obvious that this is not the last Toronto Life has heard of Elder.
“My statements to him, or what I said last night (were) ‘Canada needs more Michael Elders because they don’t give up,’ ” Robson told the Star.
“And I mean that. We should really do what we can to foster entrepreneurship in this country rather than the things that we do. There’s not enough Michael Elders here.”