Case information
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39798
Air Canada, et al. v. Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault, et al.
(Quebec) (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) |
|---|---|---|
| 2022-03-10 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2022-03-10 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2022-03-10 | Close file on Leave | |
| 2022-03-10 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The applications for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec (Québec), Numbers 200-09-009977-197 and 200-09-009979-193, 2021 QCCA 873, dated May 25, 2021, are dismissed without costs. Dismissed, without costs |
|
| 2022-01-24 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, for consideration by the Court | |
| 2021-10-12 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), SECOND APPLICATION, (Printed version filed on 2021-10-13) | Air Canada |
| 2021-10-12 | Notice of name, (Letter Form), SECOND APPLICATION, (Printed version filed on 2021-10-13) | Air Canada |
| 2021-10-12 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, (Letter Form), SECOND APPLICATION, Completed on: 2021-12-02, (Printed version filed on 2021-10-13) | Air Canada |
| 2021-10-08 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, (Letter Form), FIRST APPLICATION, Completed on: 2021-12-02, (Printed version filed on 2021-10-19) | Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault |
| 2021-09-21 |
Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal, SECOND APPLICATION FILE OPENED 2021-09-21 |
|
| 2021-09-21 |
Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal, FIRST APPLICATION FILE OPENED 2021-09-21 |
|
| 2021-08-24 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), SECOND APPLICATION, (Printed version filed on 2021-08-26) | Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault |
| 2021-08-24 | Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form), FIRST APPLICATION, (Printed version filed on 2021-08-25) | Air Canada |
| 2021-08-24 | Notice of name, (Book Form), FIRST APPLICATION, (Printed version filed on 2021-08-25) | Air Canada |
| 2021-08-24 | Application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), (5 volumes), SECOND APPLICATION, Completed on: 2021-09-21, (Printed version filed on 2021-08-26) | Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault |
| 2021-08-24 |
Application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), (3 volumes), FIRST APPLICATION , Completed on: 2021-08-24, (Printed version filed on 2021-08-25) |
Air Canada |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Air Canada | Applicant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault | Respondent | Active |
And Between
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault | Applicant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Air Canada | Respondent | Active |
Counsel
Party: Air Canada
Counsel
Christian Trépanier
Tour de la Bourse, suite 3500
800, Rue du Square Victoria
Montréal, Quebec
H4Z 1E9
Telephone: (514) 397-7599
FAX: (514) 397-7600
Email: mfabien@fasken.com
Party: Paul Arsenault, en sa qualité de curateur à Normand Arsenault
Counsel
Patrick Ouellet
Marie-Hélène Beaudoin
Marie-Pier Cloutier
67, rue Sainte-Ursule
Québec, Quebec
G1R 4E7
Telephone: (418) 692-5137
FAX: (418) 692-5695
Email: dbourgoin@bga-law.com
Summary
Keywords
Civil procedure ? Class action ? Contractual liability ? Fault ? Implicit content of contract ? Discriminatory airline pricing policy ? Extraterritorial reach of class action ? Composition of classes ? Compensation method ? Whether Court of Appeal erred in law in giving retroactive effect to decision of specialized administrative body for purposes of establishing Air Canada’s contractual liability on basis of arts. 1434 and 1458 of Civil Code of Québec ? In alternative, whether Court of Appeal erred in law in declining to apply principles established by this Court in Canada (Attorney General) v. Hislop, [2007] 1 S.C.R. 429, with respect to decision of specialized administrative body ? Whether substantive rules that govern private international law and dictate how content of foreign law is to be established (including art. 2809 of Civil Code of Québec) must be applied differently in procedural context of national class action, purportedly in order to avoid extraterritorial application of provincial laws ? Civil Code of Québec, arts. 1458, 1434 and 2809 ? Code of Civil Procedure, CQLR, c. C 25.01, arts. 588 and 595 ? Canada Transportation Act, S.C. 1996, c. 10 ? Canadian Human Rights Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. H-6.
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.
Paul Arsenault, in his capacity as curator to Normand Arsenault, is the representative plaintiff in a class action instituted against Air Canada. This Canada wide action, which is based on the rules of contractual liability of the province of Quebec, was brought to seek reparation for injury resulting from the application of a pricing policy that was discriminatory and wrongful toward persons with an impairment or disability, including a functional impairment due to obesity, during the period of December 5, 2005 to December 5, 2008. Such persons allegedly paid additional boarding charges in the form of a second seat on the plane for flights within Canada. After modifying the classes to limit them to persons who had entered into a contract in the province of Quebec, the Superior Court allowed the class action in part. The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals filed by Air Canada and Mr. Arsenault, respectively.
Lower court rulings
Superior Court of Quebec
200-06-000112-089, 2019 QCCS 606
Class action allowed in part
Court of Appeal of Quebec (Québec)
200-09-009977-197, 200-09-009979-193, 2021 QCCA 873
Appeals 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 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
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 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
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 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.
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