Miller Thomson LLP client claims lawyer Andrew Roman suggested publication of privileged documents on anonymous website

Andrew Roman (left) and Iain Deane*

#2 in the Miller Thomson LLP series.

(Coming in #3: How Miller Thomson LLP personnel anonymously posted information on the Internet about the National Hockey League Players’ Association, NHLPA Executive Director Bob Goodenow, NHLPA associate counsel Ian Pulver and other National Hockey League personalities)

Evidence filed in Ontario Superior Court alleges that Miller Thomson LLP lawyer Andrew Roman** delivered legally privileged documents to his client, Iain Deane, and suggested that Deane should publish the documents on an anonymous website known for threats and harassment against court witnesses.

At the time, lawyer Andrew Roman represented defendant Deane in the ‘Nelson Barbados Group Ltd vs Cox’ civil lawsuit. These allegations have not yet been decided by the Ontario courts.

Iain Deane, writing under his own name on January 29, 2009 on the anonymously published Barbados Underground website, stated:

Iain Deane | January 29, 2009 at 8:01 AM |

Dear Barbados Underground,

I received last night a courtesy copy of a letter from senior litigation counsel at Miller Thomson LLP, Mr. Andrew J. Roman. Mr. Roman is the head of the department that that excellent (and very beautiful) and truthful lawyer, Miss Maanit Zemel works for.

Along with it was a personal note that seems to me to suggest that he would not be averse to me forwarding his letter on to Barbados Underground and I have written to him for confirmation of this. If he gives permission, I shall send a copy to Barbados Underground immediately. This letter sets out unequivocally the falsehoods (proven) in the scandals emanating directly from the offices of one K. William McKenzie (whom I met briefly, along with my cousin John Knox, in Toronto on November 3rd last year at my cross-examination). Mr Roman’s letter suggests the remedies that may now be sought.

Iain Deane’s January 28, 2009 Barbados Underground post and comments (PDF 126kb)

According to sworn evidence, the Ontario lawsuit ‘Nelson Barbados Group Ltd. vs Cox’ in which Iain Deane was a defendant against Nelson Barbados, was characterized by an ongoing long term campaign of criminal offenses, violence, intimidation and harassment against persons on the side of the Nelson Barbados Group Ltd litigation, and their families, with the intent of deterring… persons from seeking justice before any court.

Part of that ongoing campaign against witnesses and their family members involved the illegal and reckless distribution to the public of tens of thousands of confidential and privileged legal documents. As well, the campaign included anonymous threats and harassment via the Internet, including horrific threats to rape and murder family members of witnesses who testified on behalf of Nelson Barbados.

Our first post in this Miller Thomson LLP series details how forensic evidence shows that beginning in at least 2004 and continuing for many years, personnel from the Toronto law office of Miller Thomson LLP used the Internet to anonymously threaten, intimidate and harass Nelson Barbados witnesses who opposed Miller Thomson clients.

Iain Deane’s January 29, 2009 public statement that he had to seek permission of his lawyer Andrew Roman to post privileged documents on the Internet was not the first indication that the malicious publication of privileged documents was planned, coordinated and controlled as part of a campaign of harassment, threats, violence and other criminal acts against witnesses in the Nelson Barbados litigation. This is according to evidence filed in Ontario courts.

‘BWWR’ asks for permission to publish court documents

On December 8, 2008, a person or persons calling themselves ‘BWWR’ (Black Woman Who Reads) explained on Barbados Underground website that the writer possessed the recently created Factum of the defendants in the Nelson Barbados case, and that the Factum could not be published without permission:

BWWR | December 8, 2008 at 1:02 PM |

It is not panic you sense, but OUTRAGE! I have just been able to read the Factum of the defendants and believe me if I had permission to post it to BU now, I would. However, I must defer to the condition that it not be posted yet, otherwise I will not be able to get any other documents from my source.

However, trust me for this, in the days to come I will get the go ahead and then I will immediately post the Factum. And if you think the odium and contempt with which Mental Madge, Insane Jane and especially that jackass John Knox and Almighty Allard are held at the moment are anything, just wait till you all read this document.

Stand by, David. I am going to be giving you the ultimate story on this series. As soon as I get permission.

Barbados Underground December 4, 2008 post with BWWR’s December 8, 2008 comment (PDF 153kb)

Permission Granted to BWWR to anonymously post legal documents on the internet

Apparently BWWR’s handlers granted permission for Barbados Underground to post the Defendants’ Factum from the Nelson Barbados civil case; because only two days later on December 10, 2008, ‘BWWR’ published another post containing the Factum. This permission and publication was exactly as ‘BWWR’ had promised on December 8, 2008.

December 10, 2008 Barbados Underground post and factum (PDF 448kb)

As the next post in our Miller Thomson LLP series shows, this business of lawyers and major Canadian law offices anonymously publishing information on the internet is not new. It didn’t start with the Nelson Barbados vs Cox civil case in 2007. It started a long time before that.

Next in this series: Miller Thomson LLP personnel anonymously posted information on the Internet about the National Hockey League Players’ Association, Executive Director Bob Goodenow, NHLPA associate counsel Ian Pulver and other National Hockey League personalities.

As always, DonaldBest.CA reminds our readers that as of the publication date none of the allegations has yet been decided in an Ontario court of law, and to our knowledge none of the defendants has filed a Statement of Defence. Visitors are encouraged to examine the legal documents and other evidence posted here, to do independent research and to make up their own minds about the civil lawsuit known as ‘Donald Best v. Gerald Ranking et al’. (Superior Court of Justice, Central East Region: Barrie, Court File No. 14-0815)

We invite Miller Thomson LLP, Andrew Roman, Iain Deane, the Law Society of Upper Canada or anyone to clarify any inaccuracies in this story or elsewhere on DonaldBest.CA. We welcome all submissions, documents, evidence, replies or explanations and will post them on this website upon receipt.

* Non-copyright photo of Andrew Roman courtesy of Energy Probe Research Foundation. Non-copyright photo of Iain Deane courtesy of Facebook. If any mistake has been made, please contact DonaldBest.CA as per our contact page.

** DonaldBest.CA believes that lawyers Andrew Roman and Maanit Zemel are no longer with Miller Thomson LLP, having left that law office sometime in 2014.