I got word tonight from David Ball, son of Dr. Tim Ball via Facebook messenger:

This morning the judge dismissed all charges in the lawsuit brought against Tim by BC Green Party leader Andrew Weaver. It is a great victory for free speech.

At the moment, I have no other details, but will update as I have them.

The case has been ongoing since 2011, and arguments were heard in court in the fall of 2017.

From an article in the NYT: https://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/08/climate-scientist-sues-skeptic-for-libel/

Andrew Weaver, a climate modeler at the University of Victoria, filed the lawsuit against Tim Ball, a former professor of geography at the University of Winnipeg and a vocal critic of the science linking man-made emissions to global warming, over an article published by the Canada Free Press, a conservative Web site. … “I stand by the story,” said Dr. Ball, who was prominently featured as a climate change expert in the 2007 film “The Great Global Warming Swindle.” The apology and retraction of the story by Canada Free Press “hung me out to dry,” Dr. Ball added, saying he was in the process of hiring a lawyer to fight the lawsuit. The lawsuit against Dr. Ball is not the only libel action that Dr. Weaver is pursuing in Canadian courts. Last year, the scientist filed suit against The National Post, a conservative Canadian newspaper, for publishing articles that he alleged contained deliberate falsehoods designed to disparage and discredit him.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I was to be called as a witness in the trial, and did hours of preparatory work, but the case took a turn when Weaver did not call any witnesses on his behalf and I did not testify [on behalf of Ball]. The case was decided by a judge, who just today gave his verdict.

UPDATE1: here is the original lawsuit: Weaver-vs-Ball-lawsuit (PDF)

UPDATE2: Dr. Ball promises a report very soon. I’ll have it here as soon as possible.

UPDATE3: Here it is: https://wattsupwiththat.com/2018/02/14/tim-balls-victory-in-the-first-climate-lawsuit-judgment-the-backstory/

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