As longtime readers will know, Michael E Mann, inventor of the global-warming "hockey stick", has been suing me for defamation in the clogged septic tank of the District of Columbia courts for seven years. In 2011, the year before he sued me, he sued Dr Tim Ball, also for defamation. A few weeks ago, the British Columbia Supreme Court ruled decisively in Dr Ball's favor, and dismissed Mann's suit with prejudice. That's to say, Ball won - and Mann lost.
Doctor Fraudpants then issued a statement in which, as I noted, he denied that he had lost at all. Mann's statement (curiously presented to the world as "our statement", although it is obviously not the work of lawyers or anyone else but him alone) contained multiple falsehoods, but also a bit of unfinished business:
The dismissal involved the alleged exercise of a discretion on the Court to dismiss a lawsuit for delay. I have an absolute right of appeal. My lawyers will be reviewing the judgment and we will make a decision within 30 days.
The thirty-day deadline has passed. So there will be no appeal, and Mr Justice Giaschi's dismissal of Mann's case stands: Ball has won, Mann has lost. Period.
Oh, wait. Before the period, Mann has to write in the dollar amount:
The provision in the Court's order relating to costs does NOT mean that I will pay Ball's legal fees.
As I explained last time, he might not be on the hook for every penny, but, per His Lordship's order and under the applicable rules in the British Columbia courts, he will certainly be paying a significant proportion of them. The first interview with Dr Ball since his decisive court victory in Vancouver contains this intriguing tidbit:
The judge in the Mann-v-Ball case ruled that the defeated Mann must pay Ball's legal costs, which are in excess of US$700.000. But Mann has already indicated he won't pay.
If the above number is correct, Doctor Fraudpants is on the hook for a hefty six-figure sum. His rube acolytes on Facebook may fall for the Mann it's-only-a-flesh-wound spin, but even someone as delusional as he must surely know that, if one party has to pay the other party hundreds of thousands of dollars, it's the party writing the check who's lost, and in this case spectacularly so. If he is serious that he will NOT "pay Ball's legal fees", he's about to have a serious collision with the doctrine of comity. In the Mann vs Steyn case, for example, the Plaintiff has pleaded that he is unavailable for deposition because he will be spending the next six months on some climate-celeb gig in Australia. Hmm. Do Australian courts routinely enforce the judgments of any non-Australian jurisdictions? Well, let's see:
Alberta (Canada), Bahamas, British Columbia (Canada), British Virgin Islands...
Whoa, whoa, hold up: British Columbia! That rings a bell.
So Mann has a choice: He can do the decent thing and pay up - or move around the world far more cautiously. It is always distressing to see a courtroom loser unwilling to take his lumps and move on. As you recall, litigious cockwomble Cary Katz's crappy old Blaze TV tried the I-ain't-never-gonna-pay routine with me, and then re-sued me for calling 'em "scofflaws" and "deadbeats". And the only result of that is that the matter was adjudicated, and the charge that they were "scofflaws" and "deadbeats" was found to be "substantially true" (Statement 38 here). I do hope Mr Mann isn't careering down the same dead-end street.
~Today I'm in Michigan for the 175th birthday observances of Hillsdale College - and in the eminent company of Mollie Hemingway, Clarence Thomas, Victor Davis Hanson and Pat Sajak. One of them's a noted judge. I think it's Pat - every evening at 7.30pm or thereabouts.
In the blasted wastes of American education, Hillsdale is a rare jewel. If you've never seen my conversation with the man who runs it, Larry Arnn, we think you'll enjoy 45 minutes in the company of one of the sharpest minds around. Click below to watch:
~Thank you to everyone who helped make last month's Second Annual Mark Steyn Cruise also our second fully sold-out voyage. I thank all my special guests, obviously, but above even them I'm grateful to our hundreds of cruisers - and very touched by all the kind notes I've received in the days since. Judy, a Mark Steyn Club member from Los Angeles, writes:
I enjoyed the Alaska cruise so much (especially your "hinterlands", e.g., poems, stories, and Tal Bachman's music) that I just signed up for the European cruise.
Thank you so much, Judy - and we will see you on the Med for our Third Annual Steyn Cruise, with the Trump-pardoned Conrad Black, the fearless Douglas Murray and of course the consummate cruiser (and comedienne) Michele Bachmann among our shipmates. As ever, we'll be attempting some seaboard versions of The Mark Steyn Show, Tales for Our Time, our Sunday Poem and other favorite features. If you're minded to give it a go, don't leave it too late, as the price is more favorable the earlier you book.
Oh, and if like Judy you enjoy Tal Bachman's music, we will have a treat for you in the days ahead.
~If you're one of that small brave band that enjoys me on camera, I'll be back with Tucker tomorrow night, Thursday. If you prefer me in non-visual formats, I'll be here in audio only for another Clubland Q&A, taking questions live from Mark Steyn Club members around the planet this Friday at 4pm North American Eastern Time - that's 8pm GMT, but do check local listings for your area.
~We opened The Mark Steyn Club over two years ago, and I'm thrilled by all those SteynOnline supporters across the globe - from Fargo to Fiji, Vancouver to Vanuatu, Surrey to the Solomon Islands - who've signed up to be a part of it. My only regret is that we didn't launch it sixteen years ago, but better late than never. The Steyn Club is not to everyone's taste, but, if you're minded to give it a go, we'd love to have you. You can find more information about the Club here - and, if you've a pal who might be partial to this sort of thing, don't forget our special Gift Membership.
