9 Bell workers sue for share of $50M Lotto Max jackpot
Posted February 18, 2011 5:53 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Nine people are suing the 19 Bell Canada employees who won a $50-million Lotto Max jackpot, saying they weren’t told they were kicked out of a pool they regularly took part in.
The nine claimants are co-workers of the 19 Bell workers who were paid $31.7 million this week by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., while the wrangling over who else might get part of the New Year’s Eve jackpot plays out.
The statement of claim filed Friday maintains that the nine co-workers had been part of a group of lottery players at a Toronto Bell office since early 2010.
They claim the 19 winners withdrew from the group and formed their own group without notifying the others.
“There was no notice of any kind, either written or oral, of the unilateral dissolution or termination of the partnership arrangement,” the claim states.
“The conduct of the defendants was an outrageous … breach of their contractual and fiduciary obligations,” it alleges.
Saul Glober, the lawyer representing the group of 19, said he is confident his clients are the only legitimate owners of the winning ticket.
Glober said he told his clients not to worry about the claim and to enjoy Ontario’s Family Day weekend.
“My clients will be enjoying (all) their money before the snow flies again,” Glober said.
The group of nine is seeking equal shares of the jackpot, plus $2.7 million for breach of contract and punitive damages of $4.7 million.
The statement of claim says that under the rules of the Bell call centre’s lottery pool each of the partners contributed money each week toward the tickets.
“Partners who failed to contribute on a specific occasion or occasions due to a temporary absence for any reason, would be permitted and expected to make their required contribution at a later time,” the statement reads.
In the beginning, one woman in the group — Natalie Damianidis — was responsible for collecting the money and buying the tickets, the statement says, but then later on several people took on that job.
The claim says that just before New Year’s Eve, some members of the group tried to pay Damianidis “only to have the monies returned to them with a cryptic advice that enough people have already paid, without any further explanation or notice of the intention to unilaterally dissolve the partnership.”
Statements of claim contain allegations that have not been tested in court and the plaintiffs have 20 days to file a defence.
Glober said he intends to file a statement of defence soon after he meets his clients next week.
It’s not the only disputed jackpot in Ontario.
In a similar case, the lottery corporation is delaying the payout of another $50-million Lotto Max jackpot because additional claimants came forward.
Those winners are Bombardier factory workers from in and around Toronto.
