Alberta Court of Appeal dismisses appeals in hockey class action
Alberta Court of Appeal dismisses the appeals in major junior hockey class action
Steven, Josh and co-counsel, Tina and Ted, at the Alberta Court of Appeal
On May 15, 2018, the Alberta Court of Appeal dismissed two appeals in the employment class action brought on behalf of major junior hockey players against the Western Hockey League.
The first appeal was brought by the plaintiffs, who challenged the lower court’s refusal to certify several American WHL teams as part of the class action.
The second appeal was brought by the defendants, who argued that the lower court erred in certifying all of the plaintiffs’ common issues, and erred in holding that the Alberta courts could hear an employment standards claim involving B.C. law.
The Court of Appeal dismissed both appeals. This means that, unless one of the parties seeks permission to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, the class action will proceed against all of the Canadian teams in the WHL, but will not proceed against the American teams in the league.
More information and the court’s decision are here.
Lawyers
Steven Barrett, Joshua Mandryk