Magna International founder Frank Stronach arrives at the courthouse on University Avenue in Toronto on Tuesday.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Frank Stronach’s criminal trial has been delayed after lawyers for the former head of auto-parts giant Magna International requested more time to sift through new disclosure in the case.
The trial, which is the first of two the billionaire is set to face in connection with alleged sexual offences spanning decades, was expected to begin in a Toronto courtroom on Tuesday. But defence lawyer Leora Shemesh told the court that her team requires additional time to review “voluminous” disclosure, which includes six videotaped statements received since mid-January.
“We are extremely anxious to start this trial, and motivated to see that this trial does proceed in the time we’ve set aside,” Ms. Shemesh said.
Earlier: Frank Stronach’s trial on alleged sexual offences set to start in Toronto
The Crown did not oppose the request, and Superior Court Justice Anne Molloy, who will preside over the judge-alone trial, agreed to adjourn until Thursday. In the meantime, the courtroom is closed to the public as in-camera legal arguments resume in the case.
Mr. Stronach, 93, is facing a dozen charges at his first trial. They involve seven complainants, whose identities are protected by a mandatory publication ban in sexual-assault causes.
The charges include rape, attempted rape, forcible confinement and sexual assault, and are related to alleged offences between 1977 and 1990. Some of the charges Mr. Stronach faces in Toronto, such as rape and attempted rape, were abolished in the early 1980s, when the Criminal Code was amended to create the broader offence of sexual assault.
Billionaire Frank Stronach arrives in court to stand trial on sexual-assault charges. It's the first trial of two he will face in relation to alleged sexual offences spanning decades.
He will face a separate trial in Newmarket, Ont., later this year, on similar charges relating to incidents that allegedly took place in Aurora, Ont., where Magna’s headquarters are based, as recently as 2023.
Mr. Stronach has denied all charges against him and pleaded not guilty.
The businessman is one of Canada’s wealthiest people, with Forbes listing his fortune at US$1.5-billion in 2018.
He is also one of several high-profile, once-powerful corporate leaders to have recently faced allegations of assault. In 2024, disgraced former fashion mogul Peter Nygard was sentenced to 11 years for four counts of sexual assault. That same year, Quebec billionaire Robert Miller was arrested and charged with sex offences against 10 victims. The proceedings were stayed last year, after the judge determined that Mr. Miller, who suffers from advanced Parkinson’s disease and is bedridden, was too sick to stand trial.
What to know as Frank Stronach prepares to stand trial on sexual assault charges
Mr. Stronach founded Magna International in the 1950s and led it to become one of the world’s largest makers of auto parts. During his time at the helm, the company’s board members included Mike Harris, former premier of Ontario; Franz Vranitzky, former Austrian chancellor; Bill Davis, former Ontario premier; and Trevor Eyton, business titan and senator. Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska was made a strategic partner.
Mr. Stronach left as chairman in 2011.
In addition to auto parts, Mr. Stronach is one of the biggest names in horse racing, having founded the Stronach Group, which operates thoroughbred racetracks across North America, including the famed Santa Anita Park in California. Another more recent company, Stronach International, focuses on agribusiness.
After leaving Magna, Mr. Stronach returned to his home country of Austria in 2012 and entered federal politics there with the creation of his Team Stronach political party. The party performed poorly and Mr. Stronach was back in Canada by 2014.