The City of Ottawa is set to appeal a judge’s ruling that found the city was negligent when Uber and other ride-sharing services rolled into the city more than 10 years ago. Metro Taxi Ltd., Coventry Connections president and CEO Marc Andre Way and taxi plateholder Iskhak Mail filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of taxi plate holders against the city in 2016, seeking $215 million in damages. In May 2024, an Ontario Superior Court judge ruled the city was negligent in its enforcement of the Taxi Bylaw when Uber arrived. On Monday, Ontario Superior Court Justice Marc Smith ruled damages “assessed in the aggregate is the appropriate remedy” for the lawsuit, meaning the 768 licence plate holders will not need to individually present their case for damages in the class-action lawsuit. “I conclude that the denial of aggregate damages would result in a denial of access to justice. Given my earlier findings regarding the nature of the Plaintiffs’ loss, an individualized damages assessment is not an efficient mechanism for compensating the class,” Smith said in his ruling. City Solicitor Stuart Huxley says now that the judge has ruled on aggregate damages, the parties have 30 days to appeal any of the court’s findings to the Court of Appeal for Ontario. “Throughout the liability phase, I have consulted regularly with the City’s external lawyers and the City’s insurer,” Huxley said in a memo to council on Monday. “Based on those consultations, and given the limited timeframe to perfect an appeal, I have instructed external counsel to appeal the adverse liability findings being negligent enforcement and aggregate damages. These findings raise significant legal issues that warrant appellate review.” Huxley says it’s anticipated the appeals will be heard in 2027. He adds the damages phase of the class-action lawsuit will only occur if the Court of Appeal upholds the judge’s ruling that the city was negligent in enforcing the 2012 Taxi Bylaw against Uber. The lawsuit filed in 2016 alleged the City of Ottawa was negligent in allowing Uber to operate illegally in Ottawa for two years, that the City infringed on the Charter rights of plateholders and that the City’s taxi bylaw constituted an unlawful tax. The judged ruled the city was negligent in its enforcement of the Taxi Bylaw but concluded the city did not infringe upon the Charter rights of taxi drivers and did not impose an unlawful tax through the bylaw. In June 2024, the taxi drivers proposed the city add a “nominal fee” on Uber and taxi riders to cover the cost of a potential settlement in the class-action lawsuit. The city has a bylaw now allowing the operation of “private transportation companies,” like Uber. With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Ted Raymond
