Overview
- Orr filed a civil claim in B.C. Supreme Court on March 10 alleging Sim falsely told Chinese-language reporters on Feb. 6 that he handed out illegal drugs on Christmas Day.
- Sim has apologized and retracted the accusation, saying he repeated an unverified photo, and his office now says he will not comment while the case proceeds.
- The lawsuit seeks punitive and aggravated damages as well as a permanent injunction, asserting Sim acted deliberately, maliciously, and in bad faith for perceived political benefit ahead of October’s municipal elections.
- The claim says Sim spoke in English with ABC councillor Lenny Zhou translating, and notes Zhou later partially repeated the allegation in a WeChat video shared about 1,700 times before he removed it and apologized.
- Orr says the allegation caused serious reputational harm and reached many residents through Chinese-language media and WeChat who may not have seen the subsequent apology.