Publisac: Transcontinental Challenges Montreal’s New Regulations in Court

A lawsuit to that effect was filed Wednesday in a Montreal court, as first reported JournalismFriday.

The 15-page introductory application demands that the court overturn the new Blunt administration regulation, which in many ways restricts the distribution of advertising materials at the doors of residences in the capital.

According to Transcontinental, the settlement said can not be reconciled With EQA, which recommend To make producers bear all costs of restoring and reinforcing containers, packaging, printed materials and written media and not restrict their use.

he is too illogicalBecause discriminatory And the arbitraryAnd the It constitutes a disguised confiscationThe company believes that no compensation has been provided to it.

Intercontinental adds that the settlement unjustifiably violates freedom of expression.

” The membership scheme, such as the one that the city is trying to impose on consumers, merchants and distributors, is clearly inconsistent with the Canadian Charter and the Quebec Charter by constituting a serious violation of the right to freedom of expression and the right to information. »

The lawsuit brought by Transcontinental follows the April 11 announcement that Publisac will be distributed in Montreal on demand only starting in May 2023.

The bylaw in question basically states that the distribution of printed advertising materials such as Publisac will be prohibited by default, except for residents who have expressly requested to receive it by pasting a label to that effect on their door or on their post office mailbox (Subscription).

On the contrary, Transcontinental requires that it be able to continue distributing Publisac to all households, except for those who have expressly requested not to receive it (Withdraw).

This policy change regarding print ads was already in Projet Montréal’s boxes during its first term, from 2017 to 2021. It also states that Publisac should now be made of paper rather than plastic.

The mayor says nearly 800,000 flyers and other unwanted ads arrive at the doors of Montreal homes each week, which represents more than 41 million flyers a year that end up in recycling sites and landfills.

mirable case

Along with this case, the company is also appealing the April 20 decision of the Supreme Court in favor of the city of Mirabel, which adopted a similar regulation in October 2019. At the time, this was the first in Quebec.

While waiting for the appeals court to hear the case, Transcontinental stopped distributing Publisac in Mirabel. It was announced on April 25th.

Since then, the Canadian Post Office has taken over the distribution of print advertisements on municipal territory – a Transfer customers and goodwill Transcontinental denounced it.

Because unlike a state corporation, As an agent of the Federal Crowncould constitutionally ignore new municipal regulations, the company pleads.

Transcontinental is represented in this legal case by Me Mathieu Quenneville, of Prévost Fortin d’Aoust.