FILE PHOTO - Kamloops city councillor Mike O'Reilly is seen in this photo from X, formerly known as Twitter.

Image Credit: TWITTER/Mike O'Reilly

A Kamloops city councillor's defence against a bid to have him kicked out of office is one of several court cases circling local elected officials.

For councillor Mike O'Reilly it's also one of two filed against him alone, while the other was recently dismissed.

O'Reilly called the effort to oust him from office "replete with speculation" as a group of ten Kamloops residents claim his company Comet Industries stands to benefit from a new arena slated to be built several kilometres away.

It's not clear why, but they tried to add an 11th person, Rocky Barrass, to their petition in early December. O'Reilly successfully had him ousted from the case and BC Supreme Court Justice Brad Smith ordered the petitioners to pay his legal costs for that specific challenge.

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It's the second ongoing case related to Build Kamloops facilities and it's also the second against O'Reilly related to his own real estate matters.

In June 2024, O'Reilly was taken to small claims court over a disputed eviction payout to the former tenants of a Sagebrush neighbourhood home. He bought the house in 2021 before Bradley Alberts, the initial buyer, took over the title. Alberts assigned the contract to O'Reilly for a $21,500 fee.

When the former tenants got their eviction notice it was on the grounds that Alberts would be moving into the house, but they found O'Reilly and his family in the house, prompting a Residential Tenancy Branch complaint and an eventual payout of a $21,600, a year's worth of rent.

O'Reilly refuted claims that it was his responsibility to inform the tenants of a new buyer, a claim Alberts wouldn't have tested before a judge. It was dismissed at small claims court in early January 2025.

In March, O'Reilly and the petitioners will appear in BC Supreme Court again where the second-term councillor will argue the case should be tossed, arguing his company will see no benefit from the arena and it did not influence his decision on the arena's planned location, according to court documents.

There are five other ongoing civil cases involving Kamloops politicians or challenging their decisions including Kathrine Wunderlich's lawsuit against the City over its use of the Alternative Approval Process, Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson's two defamation cases and a lawsuit with his own former lawyer.

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Wunderlich seeks to quash the approval of $275 million in loans for an arts centre and the Kenna Cartwright park arena in favour of a referendum. She claims the counter petition process was improperly used and it should have gone to a vote.

Hamer-Jackson's two defamation cases are ongoing, but it's the one against councillor Katie Neustaeter that's seen the most process. Just before Neustaeter's Anti-SLAPP application to have the case tossed was heard by a judge, Hamer-Jackson sought to have it delayed due to a lack of funds as he continues to gather evidence without a lawyer. He said it's "day-to-day" as they wait to find an available judge to hear the matter, essentially on the court's cancellation list.

His second defamation case is against local developer Joshua Knaak, but it hasn't seen any updates in court since August.

Hamer-Jackson's one court case in which he is on the defence is sealed and it's not clear whether it has reached a conclusion. His former lawyer David McMillan has sought to be paid more than $30,000 in allegedly unpaid legal fees from the mayor, but the court sealed the case as it was expected some of the evidence may be related to the Neustaeter lawsuit and could compromise the separate matter.

As for legal fees incurred by individual politicians, taxpayers are so far only on the hook for Neustaeter's defence as council elected to indemnify her. Should Hamer-Jackson lose, he may be ordered to repay those fees.

There is no indication O'Reilly is being indemnified for the disqualification effort, but City lawyers have been involved in the case in addition to his, while they also defend the City against Wunderlich's Build Kamloops challenge.

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