A court case involving a farmer and a thumbs up emoji could be heading to Canada’s highest court.
After two unsuccessful challenges in Saskatchewan courtrooms, agriculture company Achter Land & Cattle Ltd. is headed to the Supreme Court.
In December, the court of appeal upheld a 2023 Court of King’s Bench verdict that found a thumbs-up emoji met signature requirements and was a legally binding agreement between farmer Chris Achter and Kent Mickleborough, a grain buyer with Southwest Terminal (SWT).
In March 2021, Mickleborough sent a text of the contract to Achter for a delivery of 87 tonnes of flax. The farmer responded with a thumbs-up emoji but no accompanying text.
Achter didn’t deliver the product, and the company took him to court for breaching the contract. The farmer was ordered to pay more than $82,000 plus interest and court costs to SWT.
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“That was just one of several short …