A B.C. mayor’s lawsuit against a resident who claimed the mayor had sexually harassed a local resident has been dismissed by a B.C. Supreme Court judge who found sufficient evidence that the sexual harassment did in fact happen. 

In 2024 Sayward Mayor Mark Baker filed a defamation suit against John France, a former chief administrative officer of the small Vancouver Island village, for 13 posts he had made on the “Sayward Rant and Rave” Facebook page. 

In those posts, France outlined details of Baker’s alleged sexual harassment of Talia Clark — the partner of Sayward Coun. Scott Burchett — at two events in late 2022 and early 2023, shortly after Burchett was elected to council. France also discussed the ongoing fallout from the incident, including closed-door council meetings, further investigations of Baker’s conduct, and the growing legal costs for Sayward, which has a population of just over 300 people.

Baker argued those posts damaged his reputation and led to anxiety and depression. 

But France applied to have the case dismissed under B.C.’s anti-SLAPP legislation, which seeks to safeguard people from strategic lawsuits against public participation. 

In her ruling, Justice Lisa Hamilton found that “public interest in protecting free speech in this case outweighs the public interest in protecting Mayor Baker and his reputation from harm.”

High bar for politicians to sue citizens

The crux of Hamilton’s ruling hinged on whether the two incidents between Baker and Clark amounted to sexual harassment, and whether France’s comments about the controversy amounted to protected speech.

According to Hamilton’s decision, Clark alleged that Baker had rested his hand on her shoulder on multiple occasions, made a series of lewd jokes about other councillors, and implied that during a conference she and Burchett had been up all night having intercourse. 

In response, wrote Hamilton, Baker’s lawyers said that while the mayor admitted to making many of the lewd jokes, he intended them to be “mildly sophomoric” and “light-hearted.” 

Baker denied making jokes about Clark and Burchett’s love life, and said he didn’t recall touching Clark, but that “he never touched Ms. Clark for a sexual purpose,” and “takes issue that these jokes or the alleged touching could be characterized as sexual harassment.”

Hamilton said that following closed-door council discussion, Baker wrote private letters to Burchett and Clark saying he regretted if his actions caused them discomfort, which they did not accept. Clark subsequently filed a complaint with the RCMP, but no charges were laid, according to the judgment. 

Hamilton ultimately ruled that Baker “has admitted to making jokes and comments that I have found are capable of supporting a finding that he engaged in sexual harassment. That is, he admitted to behaviour that objectively fits the definition of sexual harassment, even if he did not believe it constituted sexual harassment.”

She further ruled that France’s multiple Facebook posts about the situation deserved protection because it focused primarily not on the sexual harassment allegation itself, but the way Sayward council was handling the investigation and legal costs. 

“I find that Mr. France’s expression is deserving of significant protection — it amounted to free expression about substantive issues of local politics, matters that were clearly matters of public interest,” she wrote.

“My concern is that the defamation action had a chilling effect not only on Mr. France’s freedom of expression but others in the Village of Sayward and surrounding area.”

Judge notes overall dysfunction

The dispute between Baker, Burchett and Clark has been at the centre of a number of closed-door meetings, lawsuits and investigations that have added to Sayward’s council dysfunction and financial woes. 

Nearly 20 per cent of its annual revenue was spent on legal fees in 2025, most of the village’s community centre has been indefinitely closed due to a lack of funds, and a 42 per cent property tax increase was proposed to alleviate the financial crisis. 

Last month, a group of residents sent the provincial government a petition asking it to disincorporate the municipality of Sayward, arguing it could no longer govern itself and should have its operations taken over by the surrounding regional government. 

The provincial government has not responded to the petition yet — but Hamilton said all that controversy was a reason Baker could have been facing depression aside from the lawsuit. 

“For several years during Mayor Baker’s term as mayor, council has been dysfunctional and council meetings marred by conflict,” she wrote. 

“The extensive, negative press regarding Sayward’s governance under Mayor Baker’s leadership would likely have caused Mayor Baker stress, embarrassment or other harm.”