A high-profile defamation trial of several people novelist Steven Galloway says perpetuated false sexual-assault allegations against him is set to begin Monday.
The case will be heard against four defendants, down from the original two dozen listed when the case was first filed eight years ago.
Ahead of the trial, one former defendant, Chelsea Rooney, who was a student of Mr. Galloway’s when he taught at the University of British Columbia, released a public apology for what she characterized as her “harmful” conduct in spreading accusations against Mr. Galloway.
“Everyone deserves fairness, including Mr. Galloway, who was the subject of very serious allegations,” Ms. Rooney said in a statement, posted online alongside the apologies of eight others. She said she regrets playing a role in collecting and soliciting complaints about Mr. Galloway, and building a case against him.
The trial is set to begin Monday in Vancouver against four defendants, according to Mr. Galloway’s long-time lawyer, Daniel Burnett: Mandi Gray, Dana Kagis, Glynnis Kirchmeier and the woman who originally accused him of sexual assault, A.B., whose identity is covered by a publication ban.
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Mr. Burnett said Ms. Rooney is one of six defendants who recently settled. Two of the others settled in the summer and three settled previously. Of the other originally named defendants, some could not be identified or pursued, and one had the claim against them dismissed.
The case concerns allegations that rocked the literary community and that have tested courts on questions of whether an accused person’s attempts to defend themself contribute to the stigma of reporting sexual assaults.
The years-long legal battle traces back to an accusation made against Mr. Galloway in 2015 by a former student when he was a UBC professor.
The two had sexual relations between 2011 and 2013 that Mr. Galloway has described as consensual and his student has characterized as abusive. The student is referred to as A.B. in legal filings.
UBC fired Mr. Galloway but a retired judge hired by the university to investigate A.B.’s complaint found that, on a balance of probabilities, it could not be established he committed sexual assault or assault. He was not charged by police.
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In 2018, Mr. Galloway sued A.B. and nearly two dozen other people for making comments that he sexually and physically assaulted A.B. He says the allegations are false and have destroyed his life and career.
The case has wound through various courts over the years as judges have had to weigh whether those accused of sexual assault have a right to sue their accusers for defamation. In 2024, the B.C. Court of Appeal upheld a lower-court decision that said someone accused of being a rapist must be allowed to defend their reputations in court.
When the accusations against Mr. Galloway first surfaced, sexual misconduct by powerful men was rising in the public consciousness. Once-admired celebrities were facing allegations that would eventually lead to the #MeToo movement.
Margaret Atwood, the popular Canadian author who has written publicly about what she says was a lack of due process afforded to Mr. Galloway, told The Globe and Mail she hopes the trial finally reveals the truth of what happened a decade ago.
“It was a time of mobbing on Twitter, and this was a Twitter mob, but it was also a time of moral panic,” Ms. Atwood said.
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Ms. Kirchmeier, one of the defendants, is a U.S. citizen who attended UBC from 2011 to 2013 to study and earn a master’s degree in history. She said she is being sued for comments she made on Twitter (now called X) in 2018.
She said in a legal response to the suit that the tweet at issue was taken out of context and argues her remarks represent fair comment on a matter of public interest.
She said she is representing herself because she does not currently have money for a lawyer. “I’m prepared,” she said by phone on Sunday evening.
Lawyers for Ms. Rooney, A.B. and Ms. Gray did not respond to a request for comment Sunday. Ms. Kagis could not be reached.
A.B. is not expected to testify at trial because of mental-health challenges, according to a decision released in June by Justice Neena Sharma.