Case information
Consult our database for details on a Supreme Court of Canada case.
33222
George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company v. Great-West Life Assurance Company, et al.
(Manitoba) (Civil) (By Leave)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2013-04-18 | Correspondence (sent by the Court) to, Response to the letter of George Dinney dated April 7, 2013. | |
| 2013-04-12 | Correspondence received from, George Dinney dated April 7, 2013. Re: Wants to reopen his file | George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2011-12-16 | Correspondence (sent by the Court) to, Applicant re: nothing further | |
| 2011-12-07 | Correspondence received from, Applicant dated 2011-12-06 | George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2011-11-16 | Correspondence (sent by the Court) to, George Dinney, on Nov. 16, 2011. The Court does not give reasons regarding leave decisions. The decision is final. See File | |
| 2011-10-05 |
Correspondence received from, George Dinney, Re: Opinions, See file - Fax dated October 2, 2011 |
George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2010-07-29 | Close file on Leave | |
| 2010-07-28 | Certificate of taxation issued to, J. Beedell | |
| 2010-07-22 | Decision on the bill of costs, in the amount of $2,014.82, DeRg | |
| 2010-07-09 | Submission of the bill of costs, DeRg | |
| 2010-06-11 | Bill of costs, Completed on: 2010-06-11 | Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2009-12-18 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2009-12-18 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2009-12-17 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Manitoba, Number AI07-30-06764, 2009 MBCA 29, dated April 21, 2009, is dismissed with costs. Dismissed, with costs |
|
| 2009-11-16 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, Bi F Cha | |
| 2009-08-28 | Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, Completed on: 2009-08-28 | George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2009-08-18 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2009-08-18 | Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2009-07-06 | Correspondence received from, Robert Tapper dated June 30, 2009. Re: Return of C/A order form | George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company |
| 2009-06-23 | Letter acknowledging receipt of an incomplete application for leave to appeal and without formal Court of Appeal order | |
| 2009-06-19 | Application for leave to appeal, (2 volumes) Service rec'd on June 23, 2009 & C/A order missing (rec'd Aug.12-09), Completed on: 2009-08-12 | George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company | Applicant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Great-West Life Assurance Company | Respondent | Active |
| Trustees, from time to time, of the pension fund established under part A of the Great-West Life Assurance Company system of insurance and pensions for certain employees and agents | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: George R. Dinney on his own behalf and on behalf of certain former employees of The Great-West Life Assurance Company
Counsel
Richard Swystun
1000 - 330 St. Mary Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 3Z5
Telephone: (204) 944-8777
FAX: (204) 947-2593
Agent
441 MacLaren Street
Suite 200
Ottawa, Ontario
K2P 2H3
Telephone: (613) 236-9665
FAX: (613) 235-4430
Email: rhouston@burkerobertson.com
Party: Great-West Life Assurance Company
Counsel
E. Beth Eva
1700 - 360 Main Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 3Z3
Telephone: (204) 956-2970
FAX: (204) 957-0516
Email: cyfien@fillmoreriley.com
Agent
300 - 50 O'Connor Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 6L2
Telephone: (613) 232-7171
FAX: (613) 231-3191
Email: jbeedell@langmichener.ca
Party: Trustees, from time to time, of the pension fund established under part A of the Great-West Life Assurance Company system of insurance and pensions for certain employees and agents
Counsel
E. Beth Eva
1700 - 360 Main Street
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3C 3Z3
Telephone: (204) 956-2970
FAX: (204) 957-0516
Email: cyfien@fillmoreriley.com
Agent
300 - 50 O'Connor Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 6L2
Telephone: (613) 232-7171
FAX: (613) 231-3191
Email: jbeedell@langmichener.ca
Summary
Keywords
None.
Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
Pensions - Whether setting index is an administrative function related to the calculation and payment of pension indexing under the plan - Whether the sponsor owes beneficiaries a fiduciary duty when performing that function - Whether sponsor can reserve itself a discretion in relation to the calculation of pension indexing increments that are payable out of pension funds which have been transferred to a group of trustees for administration - Whether, in a bifurcated trial, it is open to a provincial appeal court to make inconsistent rulings on appeals from the separate components of the trial - If so, whether procedural fairness requires prior notice to the parties and a five-person panel of the court - Whether a provincial appeal court can override the parties’ agreement regarding the issues to be submitted to the trial court for decision - Whether misquoting the reasons of the trial judge on a material issue is a reviewable error.
The Applicant was a beneficiary of a pension plan sponsored, trusteed and administered by the Respondents. In 1990, the plan was amended so that increments were no longer tied to its fund’s performance, and, in 1993, the increments were tied to the Consumer Price Index. The Retirees sued. In the first part of a bifurcated trial, the trial judge held that the Respondents had violated the retirees’ vested right that the increments be tied to the investment performance of the fund. An appeal and cross-appeal were both dismissed. In the second part of the trial, the trial judge approved the Respondent’s proposed formula for determining the index to be used in calculating increases, but ordered that a previous method be used to calculate the past increments. The Court of Appeal found that he had thereby usurped the sponsor’s discretion and allowed the appeal, ordering the sponsor be permitted to calculate the past increments using the proposed formula.
Lower court rulings
Court of Queen’s Bench of Manitoba
2002 MBQB 277
Applicant and class had vested interest in the indexing provisions; method used to calculate pension increments inappropriate; limitation period set; applicable law is that of Manitoba; extra-provincial employees who retired within class period included i
Court of Appeal of Manitoba
2005 MBCA 36
Appeal and cross-appeal dismissed
Court of Queen’s Bench of Manitoba
2006 MBQB 247
Methods for calculating past-due and future annual pension increments set; aggravated, punitive and exemplary damages and disgorgement of profits denied
Court of Queen’s Bench of Manitoba
2007 MBQB 76
Rate of prejudgment interest set; costs and disbursements set at $350,000
Court of Queen’s Bench of Manitoba
2007 MBQB 120
Limitation period to run from September 12, 1990; new formula to apply as of April 1, 2006; negative adjustment not to be carried forward; rate of investment return set for original formula and new formula
Court of Appeal of Manitoba
AI07-30-06764, 2009 MBCA 29
Appeal allowed; cross-appeal dismissed
Filed documents
The memorandums of argument on an application for leave to appeal will be posted here 30 days after leave to appeal has been granted unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of the memorandum by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613-996-8666 or at 1-844-365-9662.
If you have questions about a memorandum of argument or want to use a memorandum of argument, please contact the author of the memorandum of argument directly. Their name appears at the end of the memorandum of argument. The contact information for counsel is found in the “Counsel” tab of this page.
Downloadable PDFs
Not available
Related links
The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613-996-8666 or at 1-844-365-9662.
If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.
Downloadable PDFs
Not available
Related links
The condensed books of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here upon receipt of the electronic version, 2 days prior to the scheduled appeal hearing. You may also obtain copies of condensed books by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613-996-8666 or at 1-844-365-9662.
If you have questions about a condensed book or want permission to use a condensed book, please contact the author of the condensed book directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each condensed book.
Downloadable PDFs
Not available