Date set for approval of Canada class action against salmon farmers
A hearing to approve a Can $5.25 million (NOK 42m) settlement between Canadian salmon buyers and Norway-headquartered fish farmers accused of price fixing will be heard by Canada’s Federal Court on November 30, lawyers for the plaintiffs have announced.
Ontario anti-poverty campaigner Irene Breckon and consumer Gregory Sills have been pursuing a class action against salmon farming heavyweights Cermaq, Grieg Seafood, Lerøy, Mowi, SalMar, and various subsidiaries of those companies since 2019.
The action by the plaintiffs is on behalf of “all persons in Canada who purchased farmed Atlantic salmon and products containing or derived from farmed Atlantic salmon purchased or sold in Canada from April 10, 2013”.
No admission of guilt
The terms of the proposed settlement agreement specify that the salmon farmers do not admit any allegation of unlawful conduct alleged in the proceedings and deny all liability.
The agreement adds that while the defendants have “good and reasonable defences” against the allegations, they are settling the case “in order to achieve a final and nationwide resolution of all claims which have been asserted or could have been asserted”, and “to avoid further expense, inconvenience, the distraction of burdensome and protracted litigation, and the risks associated with trials and appeals”.
Legal firm Koskie Minsky today announced the date of the approval hearing, which has been agreed between the salmon producers and the plaintiffs but remains subject to approval by the Federal Court.
The law firm said settlement class members (those eligible for a share of the payout) have an opportunity to exclude themselves from the class action.
At the approval hearing, the Federal Court will be asked to approve a method of distributing the settlement funds to settlement class members.
