Taxi Driver Online

In the last few months, several Taxi companies in St Johns Newfoundland Canada, were charged with breaking competition laws by virtue of the fact they were accused of rigging contract tenders.

It may be that the case has already been resolved, in one way or another but here is the information I have on the case, which at the time was subject to an appeal by the Canadian Competition Bureau.

The course of events are listed by most recent.
..........................................

Appeal filed on St. John's cab conspiracy, caseTaxi owners outraged by Competition Bureau's appeal, Tuesday, October 24, 2006

The federal Competition Bureau is appealing a judge's conclusion that there was no conspiracy among six taxi companies in St. John's.

Provincial court Judge David Orr threw out the Competition Bureau's case in September, ruling there was not enough evidence to proceed with prosecution against six companies. Orr also found that there was no evidence that the companies' actions had hurt consumers.

The bureau is arguing that Orr should only have decided whether there was enough evidence to send the case to trial, and instead acted like the preliminary inquiry was the trial itself.

Dave Fleming, owner of North West Taxi, said he has no choice but to fight the case. "Otherwise you have to sit down and plead guilty, I guess, for financial reasons, which to me is unbelievable — that you have to plead guilty because the financial cost could ruin you. Unbelievable," Fleming told CBC News.

Tom Hollett, owner of Jiffy Cabs cannot believe the bureau is appealing the case. "I went through all this foolishness, Judge Orr came out with a good decision, and in they come with an appeal. Who's trying to save face?" Hollett said. The Competition Bureau, assisted by the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, had spent years building a case trying to prove that well-known cab companies had agreed not to bid against each other for lucrative contracts with such clients as Memorial University, St. John's International Airport, shopping malls and the former St. John's Health Care Corp.

The Competition Bureau's case claims that the conspiracy covered the years between 1992 and 2004.

The companies charged were Bugden's, Gulliver's, North West Taxi, Co-op, Mall Cabs and Lockey Haven Ltd.

Arguments on the Competition Bureau's appeal will begin in Newfoundland Supreme Court in St. John's on Oct. 30.
……………………………………………………….

Attorney General Of Canada Challenges Court Decision in St. John’s Taxi Case.

OTTAWA, October 20, 2006 - The Attorney General of Canada filed an application on October 18, 2006, challenging a provincial court decision to discharge 12 accused charged with Competition Act violations in the St. John’s Taxi case further to a preliminary inquiry into the charges.

On September 18, 2006, the preliminary inquiry judge of the Provincial Court of Newfoundland and Labrador ordered that the accused be discharged and not be committed to stand trial for the charge of conspiracy, contrary to section 45 of the Competition Act. The application by the Attorney General of Canada, filed in the Supreme Court Trial Division of Newfoundland and Labrador seeks to have the discharge reviewed and ultimately to have the accused committed to trial.

The charges, laid under the Competition Act in July 2004, stemmed from a Competition Bureau investigation into an alleged agreement among the accused to lessen competition in bidding for taxi-service contracts in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that promotes and maintains fair competition so that all Canadians can benefit from competitive prices, product choice and quality service. It oversees the application of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act.

…………………………………………………..

OTTAWA, July 9, 2004 - The Competition Bureau has charged six taxi companies, and seven people with conspiracy following an investigation into an alleged agreement to lessen competition in bidding for taxi-service contracts in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The charges were laid with the assistance of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary.

Charged with conspiracy under section 45 of the Competition Act are: Bugden's Taxi (1970) Limited, Dave Gulliver's Cabs Limited, Lockey Haven Ltd., North West Taxi (1985) Limited, St. John's Taxi Co-operative Society Limited, The Mall Cabs Limited, David T. Fleming, Thomas K. Hollett, David Gulliver, Peter S. Crosbie, Peter Errol Gulliver, Albert E. Newell and Paul Maxwell Kennedy.

The Bureau alleges that, between 1992 and 2004, the taxi companies agreed not to compete with each other for contracts to supply taxi services to institutional and commercial facilities in St. John's. Under the Competition Act, it is a criminal offence for business competitors to conspire to prevent or lessen competition unduly.

The Competition Act aims to ensure that all market participants, whether they be buyers or sellers, consumers, businesses or government, enjoy the benefits of a competitive marketplace.

Penalties for conspiracy include fines of up to $10 million, imprisonment for up to five years, or both. Courts can also impose orders to prevent parties to a conspiracy from continuing or repeating the offence.

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that promotes and maintains fair competition so that all Canadians can benefit from competitive prices, product choice and quality service. It oversees the application of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act.
..................................