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The power outage that occurred in April 2023 in the Montreal area, caused by an ice storm, has led to a citizen applying for authorization for a class action against Hydro-Québec and the Government of Quebec.
The plaintiff, Daniel Rolland, sought damages of $1,000 per resident citizen of the Montreal metropolitan area, totaling nearly 4 million people, due to the outage that affected the region for a period of two to six days.
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Rolland aimed to represent "all citizens residing in the Montreal Metropolitan Area, whether natural or legal persons and consuming Hydro-Québec's electric current, both personally and professionally, within the meaning of Article 571 of the Code of Civil Procedure; these persons having been deprived of electric power for several days from Wednesday, April 5, 2023."
Rolland alleged that the Crown corporation and the Government of Quebec were negligent, particularly in controlling vegetation near the electric wires, which he claimed caused the outage following the freezing rain storm. He argued that even in the absence of fault, it would constitute a neighborhood disorder warranting damages.
However, Justice Lukasz Granosik of the Superior Court rejected this request, stating that "there is no precise or detailed allegation of fault."
Rolland was represented by Me Gérard Samet, also known as Super Samet, from Derhy Avocats.
Hydro-Québec was represented by Me Alessandra Palumbo and Me William Moran from its internal legal team, as well as Me Vincent Rochette, Me Marie-Geneviève Bélanger, and Me Jean Bertrand from Norton Rose Fulbright. The Government of Quebec was represented by Me Gabriel Lavigne and Me Alexandra Hodder from Justice Quebec.
Regarding no-fault liability, the applicant failed to demonstrate any recurrence or seriousness of the situation.
The judge concluded that there was no valid cause in this request, and no sufficient legal basis to authorize it.
Furthermore, the judge noted "that there is no allegation of any fault on the part of the Quebec government."
Hydro-Québec stated that it is satisfied with the decision and is awaiting a potential appeal from the applicant. Rolland clarified that he has not yet made a decision regarding an appeal.
