Peter Merchant

Following dismissal of a large class action brought by a class of pilots against another class of pilots alleging economic torts, breach of fiduciary duty, and negligent misrepresentation, the successful defendants sought $1.5 million in costs.

The court considered the discretion under s. 131 of the Courts of Justice Act and the factors under Rule 57.01, as well as s. 31 of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992.

Although the proceeding involved unusual procedural features including a defendant class and lengthy litigation history, the court found it was primarily a private commercial dispute and not a test case or matter of public interest.

Despite the defendants’ success and their settlement offers, the court determined that aspects of the defendants’ conduct in their dealings with the plaintiffs justified denying them costs.

Each side was ordered to bear its own costs.

The Plaintiffs, representing Air Ontario pilots, brought a class action against the Defendants, representing Air Canada pilots, alleging unlawful act conspiracy, intentional interference with economic interests, breach of fiduciary duty, and negligent misrepresentation.

The dispute arose from the failure to implement a merged pilot seniority list following an arbitration award by Michel Picher.

The court dismissed all claims, finding that the Defendants' conduct was not unlawful, there was no intention to injure, no fiduciary duty was owed to the Plaintiffs, and the representations made were not actionable.

Furthermore, the court found that the Plaintiffs suffered no damages as Air Canada would never have agreed to the merged seniority list.