The civil suit between Watson Lake's doctor and pharmacy owner and the Yukon News will continue, the Yukon Supreme Court has ruled, in spite of an "inordinate and inexcusable” delay.

Justice Leigh Gower was tasked with deciding if the case launched against the News by Dr. Said Secerbegovic should be dismissed, after more than five years of back-and-forth discussions between the two parties.

The News made an application to dismiss the case "for want of prosecution” this summer, claiming Secerbegovic and his lawyers allowed the case to stagnate for almost five years: from July 2005 until May 2010.

The original case was filed by Secerbegovic in May 2005, following a November 2004 editorial – written by now-News editor Richard Mostyn and based on a story by CBC radio reporter Nancy Thomson – about a perceived problem in Watson Lake due to the over-prescribing of prescription drugs.

Secerbegovic is both the prescriber and dispenser of prescription drugs in the B.C.-Yukon border town, and was named in both pieces.

The two sides communicated regularly throughout 2005 and into 2006, but both sides agreed to postpone their first court date until they had documents from the CBC.

During that time, lawyers for the two sides also discussed a possible out-of-court settlement, according to Gower's decision, but ultimately Secerbegovic's then-lawyer said his client wished to go ahead with the trial.

But in the fall of 2006, News lawyer David Sutherland learned Secerbegovic's lawyer had retired and was not informed of who was taking over the file.

Nothing happened on the case until May 2009, when Secerbegovic's new lawyer contacted the paper with a settlement offer and also inquired about the CBC documents.

After a brief flurry of correspondence, wherein Sutherland said he had no instructions to respond to the settlement offer, Secerbegovic's lawyer underwent back surgery and was working part-time or not at all for three months, according to court documents.

The two sides started talking again in April of this year and a case management conference was held in June.

In August, the News filed its current application to dismiss the case altogether, saying for 58 months, Secerbegovic's lawyers failed to take any steps toward trial.

But Gower rejected that take on events.

"With respect, I find this characterization of the total period of delay unrealistic,” Gower wrote.

The communications that went into 2006 all count as "steps” toward trial, he decided.

The actual delay was from September 2006 until May 2009, he said, equaling approximately 32 months.

"Nevertheless, it strikes me that a period of 32 months, without the plaintiff taking any steps at all, is indeed inordinate,” he concluded.

It was also inexcusable, he wrote, in spite of the various excuses put forward by Secerbegovic's lawyer.

But Gower found that the News has dragged its feet as well in obtaining the CBC documents underlying the original story (which the CBC has refused to hand over without a court order, for fear of being sued as well).

The News' defence has not been seriously harmed by the delay, and if it is, the harm is of the News' own making, the judge ruled.

The trial between Secerbegovic and the paper is scheduled for May 2011, according to the judgment, and will be heard by Gower.