X paying anti-lockdown Canadian doctor's legal bills after $12M defamation suit backfired
Elon Musk’s X has announced that it will help a Canadian doctor pay legal bills after she was warned over her tweets during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill, a physician based in Brampton, Ontario, set up a fundraiser on GiveSendGo.com after realizing she had “just weeks to pay” a $300,000 legal bill.
Her supporters, many of whom identify themselves as doctors and nurses in their publicly visible donation messages, have raised over $195,000 so far.
“X is proud to help defend Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill against the government-supported efforts to cancel her speech,” reads a statement published to X on Sunday.
X is proud to help defend Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill against the government-supported efforts to cancel her speech.@dockaurG is a practicing physician in Canada, specializing in immunology and pediatrics. Because she spoke out publicly on Twitter (now X) in opposition to the… https://t.co/IujDSeBGBN
— News (@XNews) March 24, 2024
“Because she spoke out publicly on Twitter (now X) in opposition to the Canadian and Ontario governments’ COVID lockdown efforts and vaccination mandates, she was harassed by the legacy media, censored by prior Twitter management, and subjected to investigations and disciplinary proceedings by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario that resulted in ‘cautions’ being placed on her permanent public record,” it continues.
But what got the physician into legal hot water in the first place?
A $12 million defamation lawsuit
In 2020, Gill and co-plaintiff Dr. Ashvinder Kaur Lamba launched a lawsuit against multiple defendants — including Canadian journalists and physicians — seeking damages of approximately $12 million for defamation, conspiracy, and negligence, according to court documents.
Community Notes
With no sense of irony, X is paying legal bills of Dr Kulvinder Kaur Gill who sued 23 physicians & journalists for tweeting criticisms of her public statements and claiming they are supporting free speech on the platform
Receipts: https://t.co/7XxUHnuC2v https://t.co/ogWs6QSStI pic.twitter.com/pk7PW4o5pY
— Ilan Schwartz MD PhD (@GermHunterMD) March 25, 2024
Gill alleged that the group defamed her for her “unorthodox” views regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the court documents, some of Gill’s claims included questioning the need for the COVID-19 vaccine and claiming that “society could safely return to normal life” during lockdowns.
The defendants struck back by filing an anti-SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation) motion, which allows individuals who have a lawsuit against them to be dismissed at primary stages if it qualifies as a SLAPP. In 2022, Gill’s lawsuit was dismissed.
But that wasn’t the end of Gill’s fight.
According to an online summary of her ordeal, Gill and Lamba launched a notice of appeal in the spring of 2022.
Gill was also ordered to pay the defendants $1.1 million in legal costs, which the doctor appealed.
Court documents stated that Lamba felt “she should not bear costs in connection with the COVID-19 issue on a joint and several liability basis with Dr. Gill.”
That left Gill to pay the majority of the fees. The amount she owed was lowered to $300,000 in February 2024, with a payment deadline of the end of March.
Canadian doctor asked Musk for help
With a hefty bill and only weeks to pay, Gill acknowledged she was struggling to afford the fee.
In an interview posted on X this month, Gill said it was “$300,000 that [she didn’t] have after four years of being entangled in multiple legal battles.”
Aside from starting her fundraiser to help cover the costs, Gill also tried to reach out to Musk publically on X on March 21, and it appears that he caught wind of her story.
Hi @elonmusk @X—as one of the first🇨🇦MDs to oppose lockdowns on twitter in 2020, in a socialized healthcare system where govt is sole-payer, I've been persecuted for 4yrs solely d/t my tweets. Pls help a fellow Cdn! ~$300K in court-ordered costs due in 4d:https://t.co/b0cc5pZIBk https://t.co/kpD3FzgnNK pic.twitter.com/nNSKGda1D0
— Kulvinder Kaur MD (@dockaurG) March 21, 2024
The social media platform officially shared that when Musk learned of Gill’s crowdfunding campaign, he felt compelled to step in and help.
“X will now fund the rest of Dr. Gill’s campaign so that she can pay her $300,000 judgment and her legal bills,” the platform said.
“Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and a critical defence against totalitarianism in all forms. We must do whatever we can to protect it, and at X, we will always fight to protect your right to speak freely.”
Musk also posted about the decision. “In support of your right to speak,” he wrote.
In support of your right to speak https://t.co/qWCOYYALPf
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 24, 2024
In response to the news, Gill confirmed that X contacted her directly regarding Musk’s financial pledge and his offer to assist her appeal in her ongoing court cases.
“May Waheguru bless you,” Gill tweeted, referring to the term for “god” in Sikhism.
.@elonmusk’s @X contacted me directly confirming Elon’s commitment to pay remainder of campaign to reach $300K AND Elon has committed to assisting my appeal of 3 CPSO cautions, for my 2020 tweets opposing lockdowns, to the very end (ONCA & SCC if needed)
May Waheguru bless you🙏🏽 https://t.co/1fsIWmoVcS
— Kulvinder Kaur MD (@dockaurG) March 24, 2024
News of X’s decision to support the Canadian doctor was met with mixed reactions on social media. Some thanked Musk for “supporting free speech.”
X is once again defending free speech and backing their promise to help those whose rights are being attacked!🙌💖💪👏🤗🙏 Fighting for what is right!
Thank you, Elon and Team!— debbz8 xQFDBANNEDx (@debbz8) March 24, 2024
@elonmusk is showing that he is a man of his word with this. @dockaurG is deserving of his support like no other. She put others before herself and self-sacrifice above self-preservation. She is an example to us all 🙏
— Mike Fairclough (@1MikeFairclough) March 24, 2024
Good to know X has our backs!!
— Brian Basson (@BassonBrain) March 24, 2024
Others took issue with the social media platform stepping in and argued that these legal bills came from Kaur’s own doing.
You are nuts!
Kulvinder Kaur was not persecuted unjustly. Kulvinder Kaur Gill filed a $12-million libel suit against her critics. A judge ordered her to pay the defendants as much as $1.1 million in legal costs after her lawsuit was struck down— Zacht (@zachsnews) March 25, 2024
The actual facts of the @dockaurG lawsuit:
The appellant, Dr. Kulvinder Kaur Gill, initiated proceedings against 23 individual and corporate defendants, seeking damages for defamation, conspiracy, and negligence. The claim against the remaining defendants arose from Twitter… https://t.co/yTxoK8xtWt
— Frank Han MD 🇺🇦Pediatric/ACHD/GUCH Cardiologist (@han_francis) March 25, 2024
Paying the legal bills of a doctor spreading disinformation re public health, while her group is covertly supported by operations like #AIER, & launching SLAPP suits to try & silence colleagues, while pretending it’s about “free speech”, is a con-job of pathological proportions. pic.twitter.com/wMJWchh0Qe
— @heathermoandco.bsky.social (@HeatherMoAndCo) March 24, 2024
X has been under fire for the spread of misinformation in the past, mainly due to the platform’s change in its verification system.
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