A Saskatchewan farmer has launched a class action lawsuit against the two national railways and the federal government for overcharging western Canadian farmers by what could amount to billions of dollars.
Gordon Wallace of Unity, Sask., filed a statement of claim Dec. 17 alleging farmers have been paying too much for their rail freight dating back to 1983.
The lawsuit stems from a Feb. 19, 2008, Canadian Transportation Agency decision that determined farmers had overpaid for the maintenance of government hopper cars by $72.2 million, a decision upheld by the Federal Court of Appeal in a Nov. 24, 2008, judgment.
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Wallace alleges the CTA ruling does not address over-charges from before 2007-08 and it did not redirect any repayment of the over-charges to the grain producers who bear the transportation costs.
He claims Canadian Pacific Railway and Canadian National Railway have been misstating and exaggerating the cost of transporting grain since 1983 and he wants that money returned to western Canadian farmers with interest.
Joel Hesje, a lawyer with McKercher LLP Barristers and Solicitors, the Saskatoon law firm representing Wallace, said the money owed to farmers could be substantial.
“Do the math. It’s not impossible that it is into the billions (of dollars),” he said.
The federal government has also been named in the statement of claim. Wallace alleges the Canadian Transportation Agency and its predecessors did not exercise due diligence in reviewing the costs submitted by the railways.
Statements of defence have not been filed.
