Man suing estate of Indigenous artist Norval Morrisseau denies estate's claims

VANCOUVER — A British Columbia man who is suing the estate of acclaimed Indigenous artist Norval Morrisseau alleging he was sexually assaulted by the painter disputes claims made by the estate in response to the lawsuit.

Mark Anthony Jacobson is seeking $5 million from the estate in general, aggravated and punitive damages, and damages for economic loss, claiming Morrisseau reached into his pants and touched him on the buttocks after Morrisseau’s assistant suggested he could heal Jacobson’s back pain.

In response to lawsuit, the estate said Morrisseau “was in no position to be physically or socially aggressive” at the time of the alleged 2006 assault, that he “had no libido,” was held upright in a wheelchair by straps, and was in the advanced stages of Parkinson’s disease before dying th