Monday, July 28, 2008

Portrait of an increasingly desperate lawyer disintegrating into detail!

Counselor Trachtenberg
Tansi/Good Day Readers:
As long as Manitoba Metis Federation President and "Chief" Plaintiff David Chartrand continues to sign his minimum $250/hour Canadian taxpayer funded cheques in the MMF's asinine defamation lawsuit against www.CyberSmokeSignals.com, he'll file court documents ad nauseam - it's all billable hours. Can you blame him? Wouldn't you? Remember, the Federation is his white whale. He has a lot more to lose than we do. Keep waiting for him to implode - BANG! How does this expensive, publicly financed litigation benefit our Metis citizens?
This case goes back to September, 2003. As is the custom, the MMF's Provincial Board of Directors met on the eve of that year's Annual General Assembly. An anonymous source advised us David Chartrand had attempted to get a motion passed to sue CSS.com but was only successful reaching agreement a lawyer should monitor the site searching for litigious material. We don't know who it was but strongly suspect Murray Trachtenberg. Notice My File No. 2003-20 quoted on all his correspondence.

Terrance Paul Belhumeur

Upon learning of this development I suggested to Terry Belhumeur CyberSmokeSignals registered owner we exercise due diligence by finding a lawyer willing to oversee the postings given we were now, in effect, on a "defamation watch." Mr. Belhumeur then contacted Lionel R. Chartrand a Legal Aid Manitoba attorney and current President of the Aboriginal Council of Winnipeg Inc. A mid-September, 2003 posting announced Mr. L. Chartrand had agreed to serve as General Legal Council which he did pro bono.
Lionel R. R. Chartrand
L. Chartrand proceeded to write several articles which appeared on the website critical of the MMF's approach to negotiating gathering rights with the province. He also authored the allegedly defamatory material (a petition) posted verbatim with his approval in late January, 2004.
"David announced today that he will seek federal and provincial grants to assist the MMF with the new election expenses and for funds to re-write the election by-laws. Sounds to me, given his conduct lately, that he is asking for a large campaign donation. I think we need to draft a petition to the governments stating that the Metis are opposed to these campaign donations. We should scrtinize the MMF expenses for the last 12 months. I wouldn't be surprised if over 50% of the MMF budget is spent on unnecessary expenses for travel claims, accommodation, legal fees and campaigning for David."
From: "Lionel Chartrand" lrc@shaw.ca
To: "clare pieuk" pieuk@shaw.ca
Sent: January 20, 2004 12:46 AM
Subject: David
Note: Shortly thereafter during a subsequent telephone conversation Lionel Chartrand suggested he write the petition and agreed to do so because he had significant experience preparing this kind of document.
Messrs. Belhumeur and I subsequently learned Lionel Chartrand had entered into a personal services contract ($2,500 monthly retainer) with the Federation to provide legal advice on Aborginal hunting rights. Counselor Trachtenberg is and has been fully aware of the situation for some time now having seen several of the incriminating e-mail implicating Mr. Chartrand.
Lionel Chartrand has not been named as a Co-Defendant. Why? Yet the publicly financed Plaintiffs continue to authorize payment of Mr. Trachtenberg's legal fees which are now probably well over $200,000. From where in the MMF's budget are these funds being expensed.
To date there have been an extraordinary 130 court documents filed in this case over 100 by the Plaintiff's lawyer. Below is the latest correspondence from Counselor Trachtenberg advising yet again he's amending his clients' Affidavit of Documents - probably the third or fourth time.
We'll spare you the detail of the Plaintiffs' 14 page re-amended Affidavit of Documents and only show you Counselor Trachtenberg's covering letter. What's truly amazing in all this is Mr. Trachtenberg has generated more paperwork than you'd see in a first degree murder charge! Haven't done a count lately but likely over 1,000 pages.
Ron Chartrand, Vice-President of the MMF's largest Region (Winnipeg) never agreed to be a Plaintiff. Since then Richard DelaRonde (former Provincial Director), Bonnie McIntyre and Darrel Deslauriers (former Provincial Director) have signed Notices of Discontinuance withdrawing as litigants.

Sincerely,
Clare L. Pieuk
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
POSNER & TRACHTENBERG
Barristers, Solicitors & Notaries Public
710-491 Portage Avenue
Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E4
Fax: (204) 944-8878

Gerald S. Posner, Maniotba & Ontario Bars

Murray N. Trachtenberg, B.A., LL.B.
Direct Line: (204) 940-9602
e-mail: mtrachtenberg@ptlaw.mb.ca
________________________________________
July 24, 2008

Mr. Clare L. Pieuk
2-371 Des Meurons Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba R2H 2N6

Dear Mr. Pieuk:

Re: MMF et al vs. Clare L. Pieuk et al
Queen's Bench File No. CI 05-01-41955
My File No. 2003-20

This is further to my letter of January 23, 2008 wherein I advised you that MMF would be providing an amended affidavit of documents.

Enclosed please find the amended affidavit of documents of the plaintiff Manitoba Metis Federation Inc. sworn July 23, 2008.

In addition to those documents referred to in my letter of January 23, 2008 the following documents have been added to Schedule "A":

8(a), 9(a), 9(b), 26(b) and 65(a)

Yours truly,
(Signature)
MURRAY N. TRACHTENBERG
MNT/pb
Enc.

posted by Clare L. Pieuk at 6:56 PM

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