Good to know HW and I know you support them. The mods and Brian CC are keeping a close eye on this as it affects all of us.Hockey Widow wrote:If someone has homeowner's or tenant's insurance they have liability coverage. Liability insurance covers for defamation. They will pay for the legal fees and any award for damages. They will not pay for punitive or aggravated damages. If any of the posters are kids then their parents policies, should they have then, will also rise to the occasion. Since our friend can no longer talk about this publicly I will say I have heard through my sources that he has insurance.
As to keeping this thread open I have no problem with that if we keep it respectful. I think it is a good place to have a voice and share frustrations and discuss the case as it progresses. For all of us on any forum or social media it has an impact on future conduct.
I too have a hard time trying to imagine what type of damages Burke could possible have suffered to his reputation. It is however enough to prove that some damage was caused to trigger an award for punitive damages. And that is exactly what I think this is about. He wants to publicly expose people and then punish them financially and make an example out of them. He has said all money will go to charity so this is not about his financial gains as he will have hefty legal fees. You never recover all of your legal fees, only partial.
I think he has found a cause and he is intent on sticking with it. There may have been some posters that were very malicious and wanted to spread lies and poke fun of him. But as usual in things like this the most guilty will walk away unharmed and the innocent ones get caught up in the hype of it all. I too support our guy. These actions seem very bullying to me. If you have a reputation as a bully, if you act like a bully, sooner or later people will believe you are a bully.
No matter how we feel about hockey, our team and each other, we are a community and all of us, fans of the game.
I can only imagine how the rumour affected BB. I don't think it was a personal attack but cheap speculative joke taken too far.
But the reality is there are others involved here. Parters, kids, professional and personal reputations, etc. so it should not be taken lightly. I certainly don't when it involves children.
It will probably settle out as it should when all is said and done and with everyone copacetic.