Air Ontario Lawsuit
Good Afternoon All:
The very long saga of the Air Ontario Law Suit appears to be over.
A very well deserved BRAVO ZULU to those who were involved in this file from 1997!
My Fellow Pilots,
Summary
Since 1997 ACPA has supported the defence of a lawsuit filed by a group of Air Ontario pilots against a group of Air Canada pilots.
After many years of litigation, a recent decision of the Court of Appeal for Ontario has dismissed all claims against the defendant Air Canada pilots. In short, the Court found that the trial judge was correct in her conclusions of fact and law and dismissed the appeal.
While it is technically possible that an appeal may be filed with the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) in relation to this matter, given the narrow grounds for appeal at the SCC and the decision at issue, we are cautiously optimistic that this may finally be the conclusion of this long-running dispute. The Air Ontario pilots have until September 19, 2015 to file a request for leave to appeal to the SCC. We will keep you advised of any such action or if and when we can confirm that the matter is finally at an end.
A more detailed explanation of the Air Ontario lawsuit and this recent decision is set out below and the complete decision is posted on the web site next to this newsletter.
Thank You
To say the least, this has been an epic file. I would be remiss if I were not to try to thank the many people involved in this matter and the membership for your patience and support during the course of this long struggle.
First and foremost, it is important to recognize those who dedicated themselves to seeing this matter through to this positive end. The favourable findings by the Courts in this matter are due largely to the high quality of the evidence that was given by those who testified on your behalf: Air Canada pilots Chris Pulley, Gary Dean, Tom Fraser, Yves Filion, Kevin Vaillant, and ACPA's founding President Dave Edward, as well as former Air Canada CEO Hollis Harris.
Special recognition is owed to Chris Pulley and our legal counsel Steve Waller and his firm, Nelligan, O'Brien, Payne LLP, who dedicated themselves fully to the process of ensuring the appropriate end came to this litigation.
Sincerely,
Ian
Captain Ian Smith (President)