|
| GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THIS CLASS ACTION |
| top |
| Q: | What is this class action about? |
|
| A: | This class action arises from an explosion and fire that occurred at the Sunrise Propane Energy Group Inc. (Sunrise) distribution facility located at 54 Murray Road in Toronto, Ontario on August 10, 2008 at approximately 4:00 a.m.
This action alleges, among other things, that Sunrise and other individuals acted negligently, causing damage to persons who were evacuated, suffered personal injuries and/or whose property was damaged.
|
| Q: | How do I know if I may be a class member? |
|
| A: | The statement of claim proposes the following class definition:
All persons who were present or who owned, leased, rented and/or occupied any properties located within the area of the City of Toronto bounded by Keele Street, highway 401, Sheppard Avenue and Dufferin Street on August 10, 2008, when the explosions occurred.
At the certification motion, the judge will decide whether the class definition is appropriate. Until that time, we cannot determine with exact certainty who is a class member.
|
|
| PARTICIPATION IN THIS CLASS ACTION |
| top |
| Q: | What is required of me if I participate in this class action? |
|
| A: | At this stage, you may wish to register so that we can keep in touch with you and communicate any major developments in this action. However, it is not mandatory that you do so.
If the class action is successful and you are a class member, you will eventually be required to complete a claim form in order to submit your claim for payment.
You will not be required to attend a trial to determine whether the defendants are liable to the class.
|
| Q: | Should I register all of my family members, or just myself? |
|
| A: | If you chose to register, there will be space for you to provide this information about all of the members of your family or household. The system tracks the information by address (we call it the Evacuation Address).
|
| Q: | What will happen to the expenses that I incurred as a result of the explosion? |
|
| A: | If you choose to register, you will be asked to provide information about various expenses that you incurred as a result of the explosion.
At this time, we do not want you to submit your receipts to us. It is best if you keep all of your receipts and other documentation in a safe place so they are available if and when you are asked to submit that information.
|
| Q: | How many law firms are involved in this action? |
|
| A: | Eight law firms are working together to prosecute this lawsuit. Click here for a complete list of the law firms.
|
| Q: | How much money will be recovered and how much will I receive in the event of success? |
|
| A: | We can never predict how much money will be recovered in the event of success.
The amount of money that each person receives will depend upon the amount of the recovery, if any, and the particular losses that each person incurred.
|
|
| PROGRESS OF THIS CLASS ACTION |
| top |
| Q: | How long will it take to resolve this action? |
|
| A: | It is not possible to predict how long it will take to resolve this action.
This action is in the preliminary stages. A judge will eventually set a timetable for the conduct of this action, but that has not occurred yet.
|
| Q: | Why must I leave a voice mail on your toll-free line? |
|
| A: | Our staff answers telephone calls during business hours. However, due to the volume of calls, some calls go directly to voicemail. We are returning all calls in the order in which they were received.
|
|
| CLASS ACTIONS |
| top |
| Q: | Why should I participate in a class action? |
|
| A: | All of the members of the class stand to benefit from a successful class action and are not burdened with the expense and inconvenience of starting and prosecuting their own lawsuit.
|
| Q: | What will it cost me to participate in a class action? |
|
| A: | Individual class members are not personally liable to pay counsel for prosecuting the common issues in the class action. Individual class members are also not liable to pay any costs if the class action is unsuccessful.
Counsel will be paid for their services only if the class action is successful. Counsel fees and disbursements are paid from the funds recovered in the action.
Court approval of counsel fees and disbursements must be obtained before they are paid.
|
| Q: | What is a class action? |
|
| A: | A class action is a lawsuit commenced by one or more persons on his, her or their own behalf, which seeks to include others who have suffered a similar harm at the hands of the same person, company or group.
At the certification motion, the court is asked to decide whether the lawsuit meets certain legal criteria to be certified as a class action on behalf of a group of people.
Once a class action is certified, it allows a group of people to have access to the court in situations where the case would not be too expensive or too complex for one person to sue on his or her own.
|