T-2191-04: Affidavit of Peter S. Eckersley
File No: T-2191-04
The Federal Court Trial Division
Between:
Arthur Mainil (Plaintiffs)
-and-
The Canadian Wheat Board and Meyers Norris Penny LLP (Defendants)
Affidavit of Peter S. Eckersley
I, Peter S. Eckersley, of the City of Brandon, in the Province of
Manitoba, make oath and say that:
- As the partner for the Defendant, Meyers Norris
Penny LLP who was in charge of the handling of the Canadian Wheat
Board Elections in 2004, I have personal knowledge of the facts and
matters deposed to herein by me, except where the same were stated to
based upon information or belief in which case I believe them to be
true. This affidavit is supplementary to my affidavit of December 10,
2004, filed in this matter.
- I have read the Affidavit of Tom Jackson
accompanying his Notice of Motion for intervener status in the matter
of Arthur Mainil and the Canadian Wheat Board and Meyers Norris Penny
LLP.
- I have also read the written representations
of Tom Jackson.
- Mr. Jackson was a candidate for the position
of director of the Canadian Wheat Board in District 4 in the year
2000.
- Exhibit "A" to Mr. Jackson's
written Submissions, the District Transfer Request Form was prepared
by me for the 2000 election. I prepared that form using as a precedent
form used by the accounting firm KPMG for the 1998 Wheat Board
Election. The form used in the 2002 Election was modified slightly
from the form used in the 2000 Election and the form used in the 2002
Election is identical to the form used 2004 with the exception that
the dates have changed.
- The Statutory Declaration form used in 2004
is the same as that used in 2002 and is substantially the same as that
used in 2000.
- Mr. Jackson was sent copies of both forms
along with the "2004 Election-Candidates Reference Guide"
which was sent to all potential candidates upon request. Mr. Jackson
phoned in a request for his package on or about September 20, 2004 and
he was provided with that documentation immediately thereafter.
- Our interpretation of the words "produce
grain" and "grow grain" have not changed in the last
four years and were used in the 2000, 2002 and 2004 election. Mr.
Jackson had access to this information since at least the year 2000 in
his capacity as a candidate in the 2000 and 2004 Elections.
- Mr. Jackson should have known this was the
interpretation we were applying from at least the beginning of the
2004 Election and possibly as early as the year 2000.
- A "producer" is distinct from a
"permit holder". Although, a permit holder may also be a
producer, a producer need not hold a permit in order to be eligible to
vote in the Wheat Board Election.
- The statutory declaration may be filed by
producers who do not hold permits, or producers who were issued
permits after the final voters list was prepared in October 2004, as
their names would not have appeared on that list.
- The Election system provides for staggered
terms such that half of the ten elected directors are elected every
two years. The intent behind the regulation is to ensure that each
producer gets to vote for a director once every four years. There are
situations where producers reside in a different district from which
they actually grow their grain, or delivery their grain in a district
different from where they reside. Accordingly, the producers are
entitled to choose which district they wish to vote in but are not
permitted to switch districts every two years. Producers may change
districts if they no longer own land in the district that they reside
in. For example, if a producer owned land in Districts 9 and 10 in
2000 and filed a change of district form in 2000 selecting District
10, the producer would not be entitled to change to District 9 in
2002. The voter would also not be able to change to District 9 in 2004
(even though there was no election in that district) unless the
producer had sold his land in District 10.
- In November of 2004 we sent by Expresspost,
ballots to districts 4, 6 and 8 as approximately 628 voters from these
Districts had been omitted from the final voter's list. The 628
ballots were sent to Districts 4, 6 and 8 by Expresspost with the last
of the ballots being sent November 25, 2004. I have been advised by
Canada Post and do verily believe that the normal delivery time for an
Expresspost envelope is 2-5 working days anywhere in Canada. The last
Expresspost envelope was sent out on November 25, 2004. Accordingly,
an envelope sent out on November 25, 2004 should have arrived at the
recipient's mailbox on or before December 3, 2004.
- I make this Affidavit bona fide.
Sworn before me at the City of Brandon, in the
Province of Manitoba this 17th day of December, 2004.
(Signed by a Notary Public in and for the Province of Manitoba)
(Signed by Peter S. Eckersley)
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