The Ontario Court of Appeal listened to Peter Nygard’s appeal of his sexual assault convictions and prison term on Monday. Nygard’s legal team argued that the Toronto trial judge made mistakes, including allowing the testimony of a trauma expert. The former fashion tycoon was found guilty of four sexual assault charges in 2023 and received an 11-year prison sentence after numerous women accused him of misconduct spanning from the 1980s to the mid-2000s.
His actual time in prison amounts to slightly under seven years, factoring in credit for his pre-trial and during-trial detention. Nygard’s lawyers filed an appeal notice in 2024, asserting that his sentence was too harsh and that the judge was wrong to admit clinical psychologist Lori Haskell’s testimony on trauma effects.
They referenced the case of Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard, who also challenged Haskell’s testimony in his sexual assault trial in 2022 due to concerns about potential jury misinterpretation. Despite this, Hoggard’s conviction was upheld as no miscarriage of justice was found by the panel.
The prosecution, in written submissions to the Appeal Court, argued that Haskell’s testimony being allowed at Nygard’s trial was a minor error that didn’t mislead the jury or result in an injustice.
Nygard, aged 84, was refused bail in 2024. The judge stated in the decision that, in her opinion, the admission of Haskell’s testimony is the sole “legally plausible” argument raised in his appeal. Nygard’s legal team also contended that the trial judge erred in letting the jury use one complainant’s evidence to assess the Crown’s case against other complainants.
Nygard is requesting that his conviction be nullified or set aside, a new trial be ordered, a reduced sentence be given, and any other relief deemed appropriate by the Appeal Court. He established his global women’s clothing company in Winnipeg in 1967, which is now defunct. Nygard resigned as chairman after his New York offices were raided by the FBI and police in February 2020.
He also faced criminal charges in Manitoba, but these were dropped in October after a judge ruled that police interview records with a complainant in 1993 were destroyed without justification, violating his right to a fair trial under the Charter.
Nygard’s lawyers recently filed a lawsuit against the Manitoba and Saskatchewan governments, Winnipeg police, and others, alleging defamation and abuse of legal process related to those charges. The claims are pending legal examination.
Nygard is awaiting trial on sexual offense charges in Quebec and potential extradition to the United States for sex trafficking and racketeering allegations. He has consistently denied all accusations against him.