Gananoque mayor says he paid personal legal costs in judicial review

The mayor of Gananoque says he has personally covered his own legal expenses as part of an ongoing court challenge stemming from a town council decision tied to an integrity commissioner’s report.

In a statement issued March 8, John Beddows said he wanted to address what he described as misunderstandings circulating in the community about the judicial review he initiated and the costs associated with it.

“Several misconceptions about the current judicial review process which I initiated, costs associated with the judicial review process, and responsibilities and roles in the judicial review process have been circulating,” Beddows said in the statement.

Beddows said seeking a judicial review of a council decision is a legal right available to any individual and should not be viewed as a privilege.
The mayor said he has personally paid 100 per cent of his own legal costs related to the judicial review.

However, he noted that the Town of Gananoque’s legal response – and the expenses associated with it – are directed and monitored by council, adding that he has had no role in decisions about the municipality’s legal representation or spending.

According to Beddows, the town currently has two sets of legal representation involved in the matter: one law firm representing the municipality and another representing the integrity commissioner.

Beddows also referenced court filings, saying that by the end of 2025 the town’s lawyers had submitted seven documents as part of the proceedings, all of which relied on information already available in the public record.

The judicial review process remains before the courts.

Keith Dempsey is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Brockville Recorder and Times. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.