CANWEST Newspaper Former Employee Claims Representation - Frequently Asked Questions

April 14, 2010

1. Am I eligible to be represented by Representative Counsel?

Yes, if you are a current for former employee or retiree of the LP Entities and are not now represented by a union or were not at the time of the termination of your employment.  Anyone claiming under such a person such as a beneficiary or surviving spouse is also entitled to representation.  Excluded are members of the Boards of Directors, persons instructing Canwest legal counsel or anyone who has  properly opted out.


2. How much will I have to pay in legal fees?

Canwest will be responsible for the reasonable legal fees incurred by Representative counsel in carrying out their prescribed mandate. Accordingly, you are not required to contribute to the fees of Representative Counsel.


3. What do I do if I don’t want to be represented by Representative Counsel?

If you do not wish to be bound by the Representation Order but you do wish to appear in the insolvency proceedings, you must obtain independent legal representation or represent yourself before the court, at your own expense, and notify the court appointed Monitor, FTI Consulting Canada Inc., in writing, by mail, e-mail or delivery on or before April 16, 2010. Your notice that you do not wish to be bound by this Order must be in the form of a fully completed "Opt-Out Letter" which can be obtained by linking to the letter from this page (English, French) or going to the Monitor's web address at http://cfcanada.fticonsulting.com/clp.


4. What can I do next to establish communication with Representative Counsel?

Nelligan O'Brien Payne has a confidential email communication list that was established to keep current and former non-unionized employees of Canwest up to date on the progress of this matter.  Please request to be added to this list by sending an email to cser@nelligan.ca using your personal email.  You may also use this email address to send questions, or contact Leigh Norton by telephone with your questions at 613-231-8216 or 1-888-565-9912.


5. Will there be a claims process?

A Claims procedure was put in place as of April 12, 2010. At this time, the Claims Procedure requires only the following former employees to file a proof claim by no later than 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on May 7, 2010:

1) former employees who were in receipt of SERA payments;

2) former employees who were terminated on or before January 8, 2010 and who were in receipt of salary continuance from the LP Entities that has been discontinued as a result of the commencement of the CCAA proceeding.

Current employees, retirees and former employees not on an discontinued salary continuance from Canwest need not file a claim at this time.

We will be assisting former non-unionized employees of the Canwest LP Entities who are obliged to file their claims at this time with preparing and filing their proofs of claim.

Canwest will be responsible for the legal fees incurred by Representative counsel in carrying out their prescribed mandate. Accordingly, you are not required to pay any legal fees.

If you are a former employee in one of the two groups described above, you should receive a Claims Package from Canwest. The package will contain a letter setting out what Canwest believes is the value of your claim. As your counsel, Canwest will be providing us with a copy of the letter. We will review the letter and assist you in determining the value of your claim.

We recommend that you do not file the proof of claim until you have received legal advice.

In order to assist, with our valuation, it is important that former non-unionized employees in the above groups complete the questionnaire that can be found on our Canwest Claims Portal and provide the required documents.

We also recommend that non-unionized employees, former employees and retirees who believe they have a claim against one of the Canwest LP Entities complete the questionnaire that can be found on our Canwest Claims Portal. Depending on the outcome of the sales process, there may be a further claims process in the future.

As your court-appointed legal counsel, we will use that information on a confidential basis to assist you in the timely filing of your claim at no cost to you personally.

A copy of the Claims Procedure Order can be found here. 


6. Where can I get additional Information?

Additional information concerning the proceedings, including this and previousOrders granted in the proceedings, can be found on the Monitor's website at http://cfcanada.fticonsulting.com/clp.


7. How can I be kept informed of the process and ask any questions I may have?

To keep informed of progress or to raise questions, all current, former or retired non-unionized employees of the LP Entities, are welcome to join Nelligan O'Brien Payne LLP’s confidential email communication list. Pleases send your name and coordinates to cser@nelligan.ca. We will also regularly update our website at www.nelligan.ca as matters develop.

Legal Counsel Representation Order from Justice Pepall
Opt-Out Letter - English
Opt-Out Letter - French