Responding to allegations of civil fraud, former University of Toronto Students’ Union executives Yolen Bollo-Kamara and Cameron Wathey have filed notices of intent to defend in court. Bollo-Kamara, former UTSU president, and Wathey, former UTSU vice-president internal & services, were both named alongside Sandy Hudson, former UTSU executive director, in a lawsuit initiated by the current UTSU executive.
According to publicly available documents, Bollo-Kamara filed her notice of intent to defend on October 13, 2015, with Wathey filing his the following day. As of press time, The Varsity could not confirm whether or not Hudson had also filed.
A notice of intent to defend is a procedural matter. Neither notice includes details of the nature of the defence prepared or a response to the allegations.
The UTSU has previously indicated that they would prefer to settle out of court. “We are open to arbitration or mediation as a way of resolving the issue, and would prefer a non-court resolution, but the advice of our legal counsel was to follow this procedure of filing a claim,” read a portion of a statement released on September 24, 2015. “Although this is a substantial course of action, the Board and Executive Committee of the UTSU have a fiduciary responsibility to use its resources responsibly to serve students.”
Should the parties wish to obtain evidence from the opposing party’s argument prior to trial, they can do so through the discovery process. This process may involve discovery of documents and examinations, in which, parties are questioned by each other under oath. In order to undergo this process, both parties must agree to a discovery plan. After discovery, the case may be set down for trial.
The UTSU claims that Hudson, Bollo-Kamara, and Wathey conspired to award Hudson a payment of $247,726.40, to which, they allege, she was not entitled. The UTSU is now suing the three for the $247,726.40 plus $200,000 in damages, a sum totaling $447,726.40.
