‘A systemically antisemitic environment’: Former legal executive at TDSB files multimillion-dollar lawsuit against board

A rally against antisemitism outside the Toronto District School Board headquarters in September 2024. The school board has been plagued by several high-profile antisemitic incidents since late 2023. Photo by Peter J. Thompson/National Post/File

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A former executive legal officer of the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) has filed a multimillion-dollar lawsuit alleging it is “a poisoned and systemically antisemitic environment.”

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The lawsuit, filed by Paul Koven, the interim general counsel for TDSB since January 2023, argues that the school board failed “to address rampant antisemitism affecting TDSB students and staff, while prioritizing other forms of racism,” the statement of claim, filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on May 19, reads.

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“The allegations being advanced are entirely without merit,” TDSB spokesperson Ryan Bird told the Post in a written statement. “This lawsuit attempts to create a narrative that is neither accurate nor supported by the facts. We reject these allegations outright and are confident that the record will demonstrate that they are false.”

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Koven, whose lawsuit claims he “was the only Jewish executive at the TDSB before his medical leave,” accused Leola Pon, the board’s associate director of organizational transformation and accountability, of sidelining him and making “overtly antisemitic and racially divisive remarks.”

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“This is not a routine employment dispute; it is a case about alleged discrimination – primarily systemic antisemitism – retaliation, and the erosion of basic professional norms,” Koven’s attorney Rob Lilly said in a written statement.

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“Mr. Koven’s allegations describe a pattern of conduct that, if proven, would be deeply troubling for any employer, let alone a large public institution which serves as a microcosm of Canadian values where children are taught peace, tolerance, inclusion and respect,” Lilly continued.

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“With his lawsuit, Mr. Koven is giving a voice to Jewish staff and students who may otherwise feel they do not have one. Mr. Koven very much looks forward to proving these allegations in court.”

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Among the incidents alleged in the lawsuit are Pon’s alleged refusal “to support a Jewish lawyer for an award because he was a ‘Zionist’” and her alleged insistence that “no Black or Jewish investigator be used in an incident involving a Board Superintendent using the ‘N-word’ due to a supposed ‘race war’ between Jewish and Black staff.”

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Pon no longer works at TDSB. Her role was cut in May as part of the board’s trimming of over 200 positions to “restore long-term financial sustainability.”

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The Post sought comment from Pon through her TDSB email and LinkedIn profile but did not receive a response prior to publication.

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Canada’s most populous school board has been plagued by several high-profile antisemitic incidents since late 2023, including high schoolers giving Nazi salutes and bathroom graffiti of swastikas, “Hitler was right” and “#KillTheJews.” Figures released by TDSB from 2024 show that Jewish students in the board made up just three per cent of the student body but 15 per cent of all recorded racist incidents.