Sued for defamation by Gilbert Rozon, Pénélope McQuade counter-attacks by accusing him of being responsible for his own misfortune and demands that he be the one to pay his lawyers’ fees.
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“Mr. Rozon’s reputation for his sexual behavior towards women was destroyed long before the comments were made. [par l’animatrice] “, can we read in the written defense of Ms. McQuade, filed a few days ago at the Montreal courthouse.
Recalling Rozon’s setbacks since 2017, including a class action against him, followed by six civil lawsuits in connection with alleged sexual misconduct, the host thus refutes the idea that she would have defamed the fallen humor magnate, during of his participation in a program of The week of the 4 Julies in 2019.
The host, Julie Snyder, then claimed that Rozon had sexually assaulted her in her sleep about twenty years ago. Mme McQuade, invited on the set, had added, claiming to have also been assaulted by the same man.
Freedom of expression
The founder of Just for Laughs had replied by claiming $ 450,000 for defamation.
” [La poursuite] cannot lead to any conclusion of defamation on the part of Mr.me McQuade, these words are a reflection of what she has experienced, ”say the host’s lawyers, however, recalling that she had publicly made the same remarks two years earlier, without being prosecuted.
Blaming Rozon for wanting to limit her freedom of expression and to scare all women who would dare to denounce sexual misconduct, Ms. McQuade asks the court to rule in her favour, while ordering Rozon to reimburse her for all the costs incurred for to defend oneself.