Lawyers in Quebec class actions seek $906M in fees for work in landmark tobacco case

A man holds a lit cigarette while smoking in San Francisco, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020. (The Canadian Press/AP-Jeff Chiu)

Lawyers representing tens of thousands of Quebecers in two class-action lawsuits against three major tobacco manufacturers will seek to receive more than $900 million in fees for their work in the landmark case that has spanned decades.

Spokespeople for counsel in one of the lawsuits say documents were filed in court Friday requesting approval for a notice that would be sent to the class-action members about the payment being sought for more than 175,000 hours of work.

The move comes a day after lawyers said the companies' creditors, including representatives for the class-action plaintiffs, approved a proposed settlement that would see the companies pay out a total of $32.5 billion.

More than $4 billion is earmarked for the plaintiffs in the lawsuits, and the payment requested by their lawyers represents 22 per cent of that sum.

The proposed deal announced in October would also see the companies — JTI-Macdonald Corp., Rothmans, Benson & Hedges and Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. — pay out more than $24 billion to provinces and territories and more than $2.5 billion to Canadian smokers not included in the lawsuits.

The proposal cleared a significant hurdle Thursday but must still obtain the court's approval before it can be implemented, and a hearing scheduled for late January will also include a motion for approval of the legal fees.

The fees requested by counsel in the class actions total $906,180,000 plus taxes, and include tens of millions of dollars in costs incurred over the course of the litigation that began in the late 1990s as well as future services to manage the claims process, spokespeople said in a statement.

"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," André Lespérance, one of the lawyers representing some of the Quebec plaintiffs, said in a statement.

"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 ordered the companies to pay about $15 billion to the plaintiffs in 2015, a ruling that was upheld by the province's top court four years later.

The companies then obtained creditor protection in Ontario, which froze all legal proceedings against them while they negotiated a deal with all their creditors, including provincial governments seeking to recoup smoking-related health-care costs.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 13, 2024.