A proposed agreement that would see three tobacco The giants’ payout of billions to provinces and territories, as well as smokers across Canada, has been approved by the companies’ creditors, a lawyer representing some of the creditors said Thursday, calling it an important step in a long-running legal saga .
The proposed $32.5 billion global settlement between the companies – JTI-Macdonald Corp., Rothmans, Benson & Hedges and Imperial Tobacco Canada Ltd. – and their creditors were announced in October after more than five years of negotiations.
Representatives of the creditors, who include provincial governments seeking to recoup smoking-related health care costs as well as plaintiffs in two class-action lawsuits in Quebec, voted on the plan during a virtual meeting Thursday afternoon.
André Lspérance, who represents the plaintiffs in one of the Quebec suits, said creditors overwhelmingly supported the proposal.
“We are not surprised, but we are happy that the creditors are united at this time to see this plan approved,” he said in French.
Before the plan can be implemented, it must obtain court approval. A hearing is scheduled for the end of January and Lesperance said he is optimistic the proposed deal will also overcome that hurdle.
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“I think we’re really close to the end,” he said.
Dominique Claveau, executive director of the Quebec Council on Tobacco and Health, which is part of the lawsuit, said she looked forward to the court “bringing to a conclusion this long-standing battle for justice and truth.” .
At least one of the companies has said it is opposed to the project in its current form.
The proposed agreement includes $24 billion for the provinces and territories, $4 billion for tens of thousands of Quebec smokers and their heirs, and more than $2.5 billion for smokers in other provinces and territories. It also provides more than $1 billion for a foundation to help people affected by tobacco-related illnesses.
The Canadian Cancer Society, which is a social player in the case, said Thursday it hoped the proposal would be amended before being approved by the court.
Rob Cunningham, the organization’s lawyer, said the plan should include measures to reduce smoking and the release of confidential industry documents, similar to what has been done in the United States. several decades ago.
“There is a unique opportunity to better control the tobacco industry and reduce tobacco consumption. We will never have this chance again,” he said.
The foundation funded by the proposed deal should also see its mandate expanded to include tobacco-related disease prevention and public awareness efforts to help people quit smoking, said Manuel Arango, vice president of policy and of the defense of the rights of Heart + Stroke.
“We already have a lot of studies and a lot of knowledge about the treatment of tobacco-related diseases,” he said. “So it’s really about looking to the future and helping to prevent tobacco-related illnesses in the future.” »
The proposal is the culmination of a corporate restructuring process triggered by a decades-long legal battle over the health effects of smoking.
In 2015, a Quebec court ordered the three companies to pay about $15 billion in two class-action lawsuits involving smokers in the province who took up the habit between 1950 and 1998 and either became ill or addicted , or their heirs.
Four years later, this historic decision was upheld by the province’s Court of Appeal. The companies then filed for creditor protection in Ontario in order to negotiate a global settlement with their creditors.
All legal proceedings against them were suspended during the talks. This order has now been extended until January 31, 2025.