Judge in Stronach trial concerned as cross-examination turns to ‘shouting match’

TORONTO — Billionaire businessman Frank Stronach’s sexual assault trial was abruptly adjourned Thursday after the judge expressed concerns over the wellbeing of one of the complainants and the possibility that the woman’s behaviour on the stand could affect the fairness of the trial.

Ontario Superior Court Justice Anne Molloy recessed court for the day more than an hour early, saying she couldn’t put the complainant “through any more” cross-examination while stressing that defence lawyer Leora Shemesh had done nothing wrong.

“I want to make it very clear Ms. Shemesh has been measured, calm, professional and kind throughout,” Molloy said.

“This is not a situation where (the complainant) was bullied or abused in cross-examination.”

Earlier in the day, the judge warned that she would halt the proceedings if the complainant continued to interrupt others and veer into long tangents while answering questions, though she said — and the lawyers agreed — it did not seem the complainant was acting with intent.

Still, cross-examination had turned into “a shouting match,” leaving the judge “increasingly concerned” that the defence was not getting its right to a meaningful cross-examination, she said in the absence of the complainant.

“I recognize that she is struggling,” but the accused is still entitled to a fair trial, she said.

Molloy, a veteran judge who has presided over multiple high-profile criminal cases, said she had never come across a similar situation in her decades-long career.

Stronach, who became one of Canada’s wealthiest people after founding the auto parts manufacturer Magna International, has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges stemming from alleged incidents dating as far back as the 1970s.

Prosecutors have since withdrawn one count of forcible confinement related to this complainant.

The woman, who is the sixth of seven complainants expected to testify in the trial, first took the stand Wednesday, laying out her account of an alleged sexual assault in 1986.

She teared up multiple times as she recounted the events of that night and described the devastating impact the incident had on her life, turning her into a “social recluse” grappling with trauma, anxiety and depression.

Emotion made her testimony unintelligible at times, and both the judge and Crown repeatedly urged her to take breaks and breathe deeply to calm down. Molloy cut the day short by a few minutes when the complainant’s testimony grew too garbled, noting it had been a long day and the woman had reported getting little sleep the previous night.

Tensions rose as cross-examination began Thursday, with the complainant often interrupting or speaking over the defence and occasionally making pointed comments as Shemesh questioned her on what she had previously told police and prosecutors.

The judge intervened repeatedly in an effort to get her to answer questions clearly and stop speaking over lawyers.

Before court broke for lunch, Shemesh said that the shouting had escalated to the point where she felt she had to ask each question eight or nine times.

“I think there has to be some obligation to ensure that the complainant is effectively being responsive to the questions that are being posed to her,” the defence lawyer told the court without the complainant present.

Molloy said she wasn’t sure what else she could do.

“It’s awfully difficult on her too,” the judge said.

“This is a spectacle that I am not comfortable being part of. I’m yelling at this woman — and I need to because she won’t stop.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 26, 2026.

The Canadian Press