Martindale v Mercon Benefit Services, 2023 ABKB 35

McLennan Ross acted for the defendants in this proposed class action brought by the plaintiffs for what was alleged to have been loss of “hour bank” credits in relation to an hour bank benefit plan offered by one of the defendants, and what the Plaintiffs styled as an “increase in the value of reserves” when the hour bank credits were not transferred to the employee’s new benefit plan. The Plaintiffs alleged several causes of action including the tort of deceit, conspiracy and various other common law and statutory causes of action that were said to give rise to the losses alleged. Of significance in this case was the interlocutory decision of the Court that allowed the defendants to question the plaintiffs on their certification application record before the defendants were required to prepare and provide their application record to the plaintiffs or be questioned on it. The matter was successfully resolved for rather nominal amounts before a formal certification application was heard, The settlement was approved by the case management judge of the Alberta Court of King’s Bench.