Quebec Class Action Lawyers Seek $906M in Fees for Tobacco Case

Representatives for tens of thousands of Quebec residents involved in two class-action lawsuits against three major tobacco companies are seeking more than $900 million in fees for their work in this lengthy case.

Spokespeople for the legal team handling one of the lawsuits have filed court documents requesting approval for a notice to be sent to class-action members regarding the payment sought for over 175,000 hours of work.

This move follows a decision by lawyers that the companies’ creditors, including representatives for the class-action plaintiffs, have approved a proposed settlement totaling $32.5 billion.

Of this amount, over $4 billion is allocated for the lawsuit plaintiffs, with lawyers requesting 22 percent of this sum as their payment.

The proposed settlement, announced in October, also includes the companies—JTI-Macdonald Corp., Rothmans, Benson & Hedges, and Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd.—paying out more than $24 billion to provinces and territories, and over $2.5 billion to Canadian smokers not part of the lawsuits.

Although a significant step forward was taken on Thursday, the proposal still requires court approval before implementation. A hearing scheduled for late January will also address the motion for legal fees approval.

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The fees requested by the legal representatives in these class-action cases add up to $906,180,000 plus taxes and cover costs incurred over the legal proceedings that began in the late 1990s, as well as future services for managing the claims process, according to statements from spokespeople.

André Lespérance, one of the lawyers representing Quebec plaintiffs, stated, “The requested fees reflect not only the extraordinary scope of the work performed and the results achieved but also the unwavering dedication of the lawyers and their teams. They tirelessly and vigorously took on the Canadian tobacco industry, shouldering the costs and risks of litigation without any assurance of payment. This commitment was driven solely by the pursuit of fair and equitable compensation for the victims and their families.”

A Quebec court had previously ordered the companies to pay around $15 billion to the plaintiffs in 2015, a decision upheld by the province’s top court four years later.

Subsequently, the companies sought creditor protection in Ontario, freezing all legal actions against them while negotiating with their creditors, including provincial governments attempting to recover health-care costs related to smoking.