Kamloops mayor’s lawsuit meant to ‘silence’ councillor, lawyer argues

A Kamloops city councillor’s lawyer called the mayor’s defamation suit against her an effort to “silence” her, as a multi-day hearing started Monday morning.

The long-awaited hearing between Coun. Katie Neustaeter and Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson started July 7, beginning with the mayor’s attempt to delay the matter for a third time.

Daniel Reid, representing Neustaeter, said the source of the lawsuit was her criticism of Hamer-Jackson in the political arena. Some were in private discussions on city council email chains and one was in a news conference where she read a statement on behalf of the eight councillors criticizing Hamer-Jackson’s behaviour at city hall.

They were instances where Neustaeter was protected by privilege or speaking for the group, rather than herself.

“It doesn’t get much more political than that in terms of public and political speech,” her lawyer said on July 7.

Hamer-Jackson launched the lawsuit in June 2023, which was later met with Neustaeter’s effort to dismiss the case entirely through a so-called anti-SLAPP application. Such applications are meant to protect people from lawsuits intended to silence them from speaking on matters of public interest.

The mayor since went through two lawyers working on the lawsuit, both of whom have since sought court action to have their unpaid legal bills enforced. In the meantime, Reid urged the mayor for months to respond in court, prepare for their upcoming hearing and get another lawyer.

He delayed a January hearing because he was looking for a lawyer, and now after retaining Alberta lawyer James Kitchen late last week, he’s arguing to delay the case again so they can prepare.

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Neustaeter’s lawyer warned Hamer-Jackson for months in advance he would argue against it if Hamer-Jackson tried again to delay the hearing, despite unanswered questions about whether the mayor would use that tactic, according to emails submitted to the court.

“(Hamer-Jackson) can’t do nothing and then show up and say, ‘I’m not ready,'” Reid said.

Hamer-Jackson was represented in court by Jody Wells, a lawyer who works with Kitchen. She told the court the mayor’s efforts to represent himself “culminated in a complete procedural failure.”

He improperly threatened to subpoena witnesses who wouldn’t comply, despite warnings from Reid, but failed to respond in court until seeking to delay just days before the hearing.

“I do understand Hamer-Jackson did not proceed quickly, normally, competently, but again (it’s in) the eye of the beholder,” he said. “If you’re not equipped, if you just ‘can’t even’, then calling it deliberate is a bit strong.”

Hamer-Jackson’s emails to Reid blamed his lack of funds for his inability to finding a lawyer, but Wells told the court he tried and failed to find a lawyer in Kamloops, Kelowna and Vancouver. Kitchen and Wells happen to be the same lawyers hired by Kathrine Wunderlich, who launched the failed lawsuit to overturn $135 million in loans for Build Kamloops over a procedural question.

Wells argued the court should allow for another 45 days for preparation to argue against Neustaeter’s effort to have the case tossed entirely.

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They will return Tuesday morning, July 8, to hear whether Hamer-Jackson will be allowed to delay the hearing again or if it will proceed.