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Martin Lehner
NWTel launches lawsuit
Northwestel Inc. is suing a local company owner alleging he made libelous statements last November.
Northwestel Inc. is suing a local company owner alleging he made libelous statements last November.
The company is seeking damages and a written apology for statements alleging some Internet outages were caused by Northwestel, that the company knew about it, and in some cases didn’t do anything about it.
On Nov. 20, 2015, Orange Technology owner Martin Lehner appeared on the CBC Yukon morning show, A New Day.
He was being interviewed about the Yukon government’s plan to build a fibre line along the Dempster Highway, saying the new line would offer redundancy but wouldn’t fix all of the territory’s Internet problems.
In a statement of claim filed last Thursday in Yukon Supreme Court, Northwestel quotes from part of Lehner’s interview, in which he claimed that one of his client’s Internet service goes out frequently, and that the issue isn’t with the fibre line going south.
“It is a problem with the last mile of delivery – the pair of wires that goes from their office to Northwestel’s office,” the lawsuit reads.
The lawsuit also quotes Lehner talking about Orange Technology’s clients in the McRae area, who he claims have regular Internet outages.
“They’ve been told that there’s an issue with some of the infrastructure that delivers Internet in that area and there’s no plans to fix it at all,” the document reads.
The statement of claim also quotes from an article published on CBC Yukon’s website on Nov. 21, 2015, where Lehner made a similar statement.
The CBC story noted that Northwestel disputed that claim, saying it hadn’t heard similar complaints.
None of the claims made by Lehner are true, Northwestel says in the statement of claim.
“The statement is defamatory ... in that it discredits Northwestel by suggesting that it is unresponsive to complaints by its clients,” the document reads.
The statement also damages its reputation and business, and exposes them to “contempt or ridicule,” Northwestel says.
The company also claims that the statement exposes them to “possible sanctions by the CRTC” without elaborating further.
Both Lehner and Orange Technology are named as defendants.
“The Defendants knew that parts of the Statement complained of were untrue, reckless with respects to its truth and had an improper motive in making the Statement,” the document reads.
Northwestel is the sole Internet provider for the territory. It also provides TV and phone services.
Lehner’s Orange Technology offers computer and network support, online security and phone services.
Northwestel is asking the Yukon Supreme Court to order Orange Technology to publish a written apology on all its social media pages, and to grant the company a restraining order preventing Lehner or his company from publishing the statement in question “or any similar, libel.”
The company is asking for general damages for defamation, as well as damages for loss of profit, and costs.
Contacted this morning, Lehner told the Star he hadn’t been served yet and only learned about the lawsuit when he was asked to comment.
“We will be conferring with legal counsel prior to making any further statements,” Lehner said in an email.
Northwestel declined to comment for this story.
“Our interest is and has been in resolving this matter through the appropriate channels, and as such we have no comment at this time,” spokesperson Adriann Kennedy wrote in an email today.
A case management conference is scheduled for Feb. 2.
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Comments (39)
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why has this disappeared from front page? on Jan 26, 2016 at 3:33 pm
With 37 comments and counting it's obviously of interest to people - please return the article to front page
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Peon on Jan 26, 2016 at 2:28 pm
@Yukonsnow
Yes clearly trolling. I mean, God forbid I actually have an opinion based on reality and not based on pure emotion and hatred towards Nwtel. I forgot that we're all suppose to hate Nwtel and anything someone like Lehner does or says against them must be true - regardless if he's saying something he likely can't prove. Silly me.
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Northstar on Jan 25, 2016 at 3:36 pm
If you're having trouble with your Northwestel service - no matter if it's landline, cable or Internet - phone 18884232333 and keep calling and keep complaining until it's fixed or you are given a reason that makes sense to you about why it can't be fixed.
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Atom on Jan 24, 2016 at 10:51 am
Thanks Mandeep, I was shy on reading material this morn and you're IT thriller filled the time nicely.....
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YukonSnow on Jan 23, 2016 at 7:44 pm
Peon: Troll much? Sounds like you don't like that Martin/Orange compete with Nwtel. Sounds like Nwtel doesn't like it either. J
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Mandeep on Jan 23, 2016 at 4:00 pm
Scooter - I didn't say it was the best in the Yukon. I deal with the same outages (including power blips and brown outs) that everyone else does. Just letting you know that there a ton of reasons for slow internet. Some reasons include backdoor access or third party users, fishing etc. Nuke, pave, restore, time machine, aren't sure fire ways to get rid of viruses. There are more issues at play in regards to internet speed than "two wires going into nwtel."
“It is a problem with the last mile of delivery – the pair of wires that goes from their office to Northwestel’s office,”
Lehner seems to say that fibre optic won't solve the problem of NWTEL and it's two wires.
sigh... after having dealt with a defamation suit I have one piece of advice
"no action lies unless the plaintiff has within fourteen days of beginning the action given notice of such.." or something like that. Before commencing a legal action Lehner had to be given 14 days notice
albeit action is defined in the court rules as - a proceeding commenced by statement of claim and includes a lawsuit.
an action specifically means a legal action to the courts of the Yukon. Even though that's not what's written...
anyways. Lehner can use that, I went through appeal court on this and they still require 14 day notice.
All in all his comment is wrong and does do as NWtel says, it damages their reputation.
I have many things to say about NWTEL... so I phone them and I tell them. Guess what?! They usually solve the problem. And when they can't they usually work towards a mutually agreeable solution.
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Scooter Yukon on Jan 22, 2016 at 10:37 pm
Mandeep: NWTel is not the best in the Yukon - it's the only.
C51 and the RCMP really have zero/zip/zilch effect on infrastructure from the 50's being billed to consumers like it's from the next century.
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Peon on Jan 22, 2016 at 5:19 pm
For all those saying "what a bully" Nwtel is... here's a thought. Perhaps Mr Lehner and Orange Technologies who is a direct competitor to Nwtel shouldn't be making negative and very specific statements to the press regarding things they cannot likely backup or prove. If he can prove it, great - then this will go away and he'll win. But if he can't (which is what I suspect), then he's not going to be a happy camper.
I mean if any one of you owned a business, and a competitor bad mouthed the crap out of you to a couple papers with some very specific and negative statements like Lehner did, wouldn't you be pissed?
There's a reason why Nwtel is suing him, and it's not because they're bullies or mean people. If Lehner was just some joe blow on the street, no one (inc Nwtel) would care. But he's not, and thus he may have to pay the consequences for his actions.
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Mandeep on Jan 21, 2016 at 3:32 pm
“It is a problem with the last mile of delivery – the pair of wires that goes from their office to Northwestel’s office,” the lawsuit reads.
I suggest you read bill C51 and begin to understand how close the Yukon is connected.
If you want faster internet remove Facebook, all illegally downloaded music and videos, and questionable material. If you want slower internet do the following:
- Add a bunch of friends on Facebook that may be involved in questionable activities
- Download torrents with a bunch of .exe files... or discopgraphy's. Just because a file is labelled .txt doesn't mean it is. Hybrid files exist as well but I don't know enough about those.
- Send constant texts + messages from your computer that include words that Carnivore, Echelon (dated), and Tempest will search. These programs are keyword programs that have backdoor access to your internet and do use a small amount of resources (problem is our resources for tech are small) Keywords to date would be: "murder, death, kill, assassination, jihad, al qaeda, mall bomb, etc. (In order to get tagged you need to have a frequency that meets a certain threshold). Place those words in notepad or word. Dos would be another great one.
- Don't use virus protection, visit a bunch of foreign sites and let your computer become a trojan.(syphilis ... no ityped Sisyphus ) This guarantees that you'll eventually be "tagged" by our national security computers. Majority of hacking is done using citizens computers. The user goes to a nefarious site, downloads a piece of software, the software can back hack the isp and open a port allowing the computer to be used as a "dummy" in other attacks. I think the Yukon’s biggest search via google is “how to tell if I’m pregnant” or “sexually transmitted disease but I’m a nurse.” All of this info is viewable live to those with access.
- Internet tethering through smart phones... bandwidth domination
I personally phoned Bell and asked why my internet service was slow and also how many times had my phone been accessed by organizations other than Bell; I also went through access to information to find out.
It turns out the RCMP does screenshot people's computers if they are under an active investigation. In order to be part of an active investigation all you have to do is be associated or implicated with any individual who may be involved in a crime. The issue with this is it slows down internet service and they are not required to tell you why you're being investigated. (There are also major issues with invasion of privacy and govie agents stalking ... but we won't get into that).
As well, as a PSA (PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT), recent advancements in software means that phones can be mobilized (not that advanced) to do an investigation. (Recently done in Toronto). I.E. you're sitting in a coffee shop next to a person you don't know. You are browsing on your phone... mic and camera can be activated to do free reconnaissance. This is one reason why people carry cell phone jammers. 1984 with a modern twist (twisted wire pairs and all those phone lines).
So in conclusion... slow internet isn't entirely NWTEL's fault.
Nwtel and others are faced with the arrival of bill C-51; Canada's Anti Terrorism Act and the long standing Patriot Act… 911 never forget. NWTEL are sometimes caught offering you the best of details they can while not being entirely sure of what goes on. I can almost guarantee more than three countries have an active interest in what is happening in the Yukon.
And always buy iDevices ... the software is more streamlined to follow you. (find all iWatches that are moving up and down for 7 inches in one group... connect all watches). Eventually connect all users. You can make a game out of it and see how many phones you can show up on! Oh always use that free wifi … and don’t bother reading the agreement.
iProducts are well documented (new windows 10) for sending back user information to servers to amass consumer trends; that eats at bandwidth and you willingly agree.
Netflix is wonderful.
/opinion from my own research and experience. I am not a computer expert.
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Alex on Jan 20, 2016 at 8:08 pm
Welcome to the reality of North American telecom companies.
Slow to roll out new technologies (Like Fiber To The Building*, which would future proof the network for a couple of decades), and shutting down anyone who threatens them in any way.
I over nighted at a friends place a while back. Not only did the NWTel supplied internet modem loose its connection for minutes at a time for several times a day, it liked to lock up needing a reboot to get it working again. At the time, I thought NWTel was doing some network maintenance, however I have since seen the exact same behavior at other friends places and at the place I work. And if I asked them about their service, most would express their frustrations and disappointment about NWTel and their customer support in not so polite language.
Also, research into true cost per GB for ISP's in more populated areas pegs the cost to about 8-15 cents* per GB. This includes costs of new networks, and other costs. Now I'm sure the actual cost for the Yukon is much higher seeing we are so far off the beaten path but never $2 GB high
It's time the North American market tried to imitate Europe a little. $63 a month for an *uncapped* internet, TV and phone bundle anyone?
But that would require competition which is sorely missing in North America. Europe solved this problem by getting their governments involved.
*Fiber To The Building: Future proof in the sense that the amount of data sent over it is currently only limited by the equipment used to send/receive it.
*Based on calculations done by Michael Geist "What Does a Gig Cost?" and Matt Hartley's "How much does bandwidth actually cost?"
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here's the link to the interview on Jan 20, 2016 at 7:54 am
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/northwestel-s-dempster-fibre-line-not-fully-redundant-1.3328460
I'm curious as to what part of this Northwestel is so offended about. Also curious about the statement about going door-to-door, neighbourhood by neighbourhood. Really? Maybe Northwestel people should take a deep breath, consider what they are trying to prove, and call it a day before the whole thing blows up in their faces
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NWT on Jan 20, 2016 at 7:17 am
You get caped at 400g for a price of $180 a month. Would you like TV? Well they would like another $100 and I will never get a lan line. My internet works about 40% of the time. It's either really slow or is not working at all. if I drive to Vancouver right now I can get un caped internet cable and a phone line for under $50 a month why do we pay so much when the internet is such s**t!
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Groucho d'North on Jan 19, 2016 at 6:16 pm
NWTel doth protest too much, methinks. Hands up who has not had some sort of problem with our monopoly Telco in either the technology of making it work reliably or billing errors? What ticks me off is the near due date on the invoice I pulled out of the mailbox yesterday. I suspect it is a tactic to be able to charge overdue fees for people who miss the deadline, but there's no way to prove me right, or wrong for that matter, does that avail me to their legal wrath?
The story on the CBC website says: "In its statement of claim, Northwestel says parts of Lehner's comments on CBC were untrue,.." PARTS were untrue? Exactly which parts I wonder?
If NWTel was smart they'd drop this and do their best to win customer favor by delivering on quality customer service. After reading the Mission Statement on their corporate website- I'd call it another failure to deliver the goods.
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Russ Hobbis on Jan 19, 2016 at 6:15 pm
Martin Lehner should be applauded for bringing to light the fact that 32 million in public funds are being used build this second line with no clear indication who the line will belong to when completed. Once again clearly defining Yukon party governments lack of transparency. The similarities between this and previous governments backroom dealings with ATCO are striking.
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Kopertop on Jan 19, 2016 at 4:46 pm
They charged me for a year for having my name in the phone book...but it actually wasn't my name. I tried to recoup it, I was told to go shyte in my hat (basically). Lucked out a few years later, a sympathizer of the little people's (you and I) who looked into it, and I got it credited to my account...shocked I was...but I'm in Yellowknife and my internet is also wonky on a regular basis...so don't think it's just you Yukoners who trash talk NitWit tel...we're pretty good at it too!
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AlexNeilGeddy on Jan 19, 2016 at 4:40 pm
Hope the community comes out en masse to support this guy.
"Protect the Peel" and "Reject the NWTEL------"
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I'd forgotten about the interview, but sure remember it now on Jan 19, 2016 at 3:35 pm
Rob M you are correct, any individual or business can defend statements made that are critical. A better way to defend Martin's criticisms would have been to explain why he was wrong - if he was - and what's being done to improve internet services. In reading these comments, looks like Northwestel is only reminding people how bad their service is and how much they are disliked. Looks like it's going to backfire
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June Jackson on Jan 19, 2016 at 3:31 pm
Northwestel has a huge legal department that has likely done its homework and is pretty confident that Martin will not be able to provide proof of his comments.
But, Orange is a FN business and they have a pretty big legal department too. Will be interesting to see how this plays out.
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rob m on Jan 19, 2016 at 12:25 pm
It's about time someone stood up to so-called experts spouting off on open air. If Martin can back up his comments, great, this will go away. If not, Northwestel, like any business or private citizen, has a right to defend themselves and hold people accountable for slanderous or inaccurate comments.
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K Stubbs on Jan 19, 2016 at 12:21 pm
My Internet service sucks. Always has. Sometime you get someone at NWT that cares enough to tell you it's old infastructure and until NWT replaces it...to bad, so sad. Sometimes you get a customer service rep., I use that term loosely. I'm sure I'm one of many. But what do you do?? You sit and cross your fingers that your Internet comes back on so you can send your email, finish booking your plane ticket, or simply play your game.
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Damages to reputation, seriously on Jan 19, 2016 at 10:05 am
Quick check out Nwtel facebook page before they take it down. The comments on there talk about internet outages, tv outages, money withdrawn from wrong accounts for payments and on and on. I'm not sure there's much of a reputation to damage
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move on, no defamation here on Jan 19, 2016 at 8:17 am
I looked up libel and defamation "defamation covers any communication that tends to lower the esteem of the subject in the minds of ordinary members of the public". Northwestel is the subject, and how could the esteem in the minds of the public be any lower? lol
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Ben Mahone on Jan 18, 2016 at 11:27 pm
Northwestel service is horrible! My house in Mary Lake ALWAYS dropped its connection all the time! What a farce that Northwestel is claiming they "hadn’t heard similar complaints". I use Xplornet now because of the horrible service Northwestel was providing and refused to fix!
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BobbyM on Jan 18, 2016 at 11:22 pm
Maybe someone should start these guys a gofundme campaign? Sounds like they will need it since it's the big monopoly giant vs the little business.
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T on Jan 18, 2016 at 10:42 pm
Well when you stand up as an expert in these interviews you should have the facts to back it up. If what he said can be backed up then he shouldn't have any worries.
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Really? (but I don't want to be sued by NWtel) on Jan 18, 2016 at 10:33 pm
I don't want to get sued by N.W.Tel….so I'll just say, really? You're suing this small company because of statements made that in your estimation are not true? Loss of profit? Hmmm. As the sole provider of service, sounds like some fear mongering going on.
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Barbara McLeod on Jan 18, 2016 at 9:57 pm
Did Northwestel also sue the CBC? Much deeper pockets over there!
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Amy on Jan 18, 2016 at 9:33 pm
Well to be fair, Northwestel ISN'T always responsive to its customer's concerns. I remember phoning once when I lived in Riverdale, and my internet didn't work for three days. The person on their help line I spoke to basically told me since it was the weekend, I was out of luck, and what was I going to do about it? He didn't care one bit and even laughed at me when I asked if I would be credited what those three days would cost me for my internet package.
Northwestel, do you honestly think suing a small business owner is going to win you any popularity? The majority of your customers are disgruntled because of what you charge us compared to what people pay down south.
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robert wills on Jan 18, 2016 at 8:29 pm
Martin, do you need a go fund me campaign started? I am sure many Yukoners would like to contribute. Everybody's got the same stories.
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anonymous on Jan 18, 2016 at 6:46 pm
Let me tell you something Northwestel. Your customers already hold you to ridicule for the service you provide them. As soon as there is competition I won't be forced to deal with you anymore. What are you going to do? Sue all your customers? Martin Lehner is not telling us what we don't already know, so how is he damaging you? You are being ridiculous.
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Rod on Jan 18, 2016 at 5:50 pm
Northwestel has been taking advantage of Yukoners hard earned money for years! They claim to have high speed internet when in fact it would be faster for me to get in my car and drive to google headquarters and get a response then waiting on their so called "high speed" internet!
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You've got to be kidding on Jan 18, 2016 at 5:28 pm
Either way Northwestel will lose. If it 'wins', it'll still be perceived as a bully, and it's not as if Northwestel customers will line up to defend the service they're getting. And people trash-talk Northwestel all the time, why pick on this particular company and statements?
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Jesee on Jan 18, 2016 at 5:01 pm
Big company bullying small company.
They wouldn't be suing unless there was truth in lehners statement.
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Max Mack on Jan 18, 2016 at 4:28 pm
It is a sad day when a relative giant like Northwestel has to use bully-boy tactics to silence disagreement and to pick on a little guy like Martin Lehner and his business.
Guess being a government-backed monopoly provider comes with perks, hey Northwestel?
I have had intermittent problems with my NWTel-provided internet for years, but I recognize there is next to no value in complaining. So, mostly I put up with it.
Is NWTel responsive to my complaints? I suppose they are, if you count them always trying to swap me over to cable.
Wonder if I'll be sued for saying that?
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George Lessard on Jan 18, 2016 at 4:04 pm
NWTel's so silly... don't they know their reputation's already so poor that not much anybody could say about them could make it any worse?
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Mike Kohler on Jan 18, 2016 at 3:44 pm
Always like it when companies/individuals think they can suppress free speech and negative public opinion. Like the 'where is our safe space' crowd?
If you want to improve your image, accept criticism, defend your service and technology and spend money where it's needed, not in law suits. Scaring people with libel suits to shut up, just makes them bullies in my view.
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Yukoner1 on Jan 18, 2016 at 3:19 pm
Poor Internet quality? And this is news? And northwestel says it isn't true? Does anyone else have Internet issues? Sounds like a big bully getting mad that someone called them out on their poor quality service.
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Deels on Jan 18, 2016 at 3:10 pm
We really need a new provider in the Yukon. We pay Nwtel such high bills for little service, even when I cancelled my landline phone years ago, I still kept getting bills from them. I'm sorry, they're not reliable internet service
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Jack Malone on Jan 18, 2016 at 3:01 pm
Hey, NorthwesTel. Just focus on improving service in the Yukon rather than trying to kill a competitor.