Defendant says sorry to former UBC professor days before defamation trial to start

VANCOUVER — One of several accusers of former University of British Columbia professor Steven Galloway says she now understands her conduct toward him was “serious and harmful” as she apologized just days before a defamation trial in the case is expected to begin.

Chelsea Rooney’s statement said she communicated serious and unproven allegations against Galloway and that she was involved in collecting complaints in an attempt to build a case against him.

“I recognize that statements and communications about allegations of this nature can cause profound harm to a person’s reputation, work, personal life, and family, and did in fact do so to Mr. Galloway. I deeply regret my role in contributing to the harm Mr. Galloway has suffered in this regard,” her statement said.

Much of Rooney’s apology appeared in the National Post newspaper on Saturday and the entire statement is posted on the website gallowayapologies.com, along with eight other apologies from those who say they regret communications or actions that accused Galloway of sexual assault.

Rooney, who is a defendant in the B.C. Supreme Court case due to start Monday, said she recognizes the communications she circulated about Galloway caused others to believe they were true, and she’s aware he firmly denies that he sexually assaulted a student only know as A.B.

The apology is the latest occurrence in what began as an accusation against Galloway in November 2015. He sued numerous people in 2018, alleging he was defamed with false sexual assault allegations by fellow professors, a former student and others who repeated the statements on social media and elsewhere.

The Supreme Court of Canada in 2024 dismissed an appeal by his accusers, clearing the way for the defamation trial.

Galloway is the author of novels including “The Cellist of Sarajevo” and “The Confabulist” and was a tenured professor and the chair of the creative writing program at UBC.

He was never charged, though he was fired from his job.

A report commission by the University of B.C. by retired B.C. Supreme Court judge Mary Ellen Boyd concluded the claims against Galloway were unsubstantiated.

Galloway’s lawyer, Dan Burnett, could not be immediately reached for comment on Saturday, although he said in an interview after the High Court’s ruling that his client’s “reputation and life were devastated by the criminal allegations.”

Rooney is among the defendants who fought the defamation case all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, claiming the accusations of sexual assault must be protected speech, true or not, and “regardless of the circumstances in which the statement was published.”

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Elaine Adair said in her ruling on the case in 2021 that if the defendants arguments were true, “there would be no legal consequences of any kind” to publicly calling someone a rapist.

“It is difficult to see how something so extreme and potentially reckless would be in the public interest,” her decision said.

Rooney said in her statement that because she didn’t know the allegations were true, she should not have communicated them or posted them publicly on social media.

She said she has reflected on Galloway’s steadfast efforts over the years and she has come to better understand the basis for his position and his commitment to clearing his name and reputation.

“I should not have listened only to one side, or allowed that one-sided understanding to shape my communications, my tweets, or my participation in the process.”

Rooney said Galloway considered her a friend before A.B. made the allegations, and on multiple occasions went out of his way to help her, with nothing asked in return, she said.

“In my 2014 book, I thanked him as someone ‘who encouraged me to commit to writing at a very important time in my life.’ That was a true statement,” her apology said.

“I know that nothing I say now can undo the harm or give back the years affected by these events, but I am genuinely sorry for the part I played in causing that harm.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 3, 2026.

Terri Theodore, The Canadian Press