Jump to content

Subway to sue the CBC for $210 million


Boges

Recommended Posts

Should the taxpayer be on the hook for the CBC's reporting? Another reason why taxpayer funding of the CBC is troublesome. 

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/03/16/subway-says-it-plans-to-sue-cbc-for-210-million-over-chicken-findings.html

Quote

 

Subway says it plans to sue the CBC over a Marketplace story claiming about half of the chicken in the popular restaurant chain’s chicken sandwiches is soy filler.

“We have issued a notice of action in Canada against the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that asks for $210 million in damages over allegations made by its program, Marketplace, that are defamatory and absolutely false,” said Subway.

“Despite our efforts to share the facts with the CBC about the high quality of our chicken and to express our strong objections to their inaccurate claims, they have not issued a retraction, as we requested. Serving high-quality food to our customers is our top priority, and we are committed to seeing that this factually incorrect report is corrected.”

CBC confirmed receiving the notice of action, but said it has not been served with a statement of claim.

 

Quote

 

The sandwich chain responded to Marketplace’s claims with a statement on Mar. 1, announcing it had two independent labs test its chicken, and the tests found “the Canadian chicken products tested had only trace amounts of soy, contradicting the accusations made” by the CBC.

It called the public broadcaster’s results “false and misleading” and demanded a retraction and apology.

Subway took out a full page ad in The Globe and Mail newspaper that read, “Saying our chicken is only 50 per cent chicken is 100 per cent wrong.”

Bédard says CBC reached out to Subway in early February, and the chain chose not to provide answers beyond saying that the results were “false.”

The tests administered for CBC were done by independent and credible experts, she added.

 

Not sure what the CBC has to gain by this, but with the funds in play here the stakes are extremely high. Perhaps Subway just wants the CBC to back down or settle, who knows. But they've taken great pains to defend themselves against these claims. 

What I don't like is the fact that taxpayer funds might be used to defend a mediocre investigative reporting show. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, Boges said:

Should the taxpayer be on the hook for the CBC's reporting? Another reason why taxpayer funding of the CBC is troublesome. 

https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/03/16/subway-says-it-plans-to-sue-cbc-for-210-million-over-chicken-findings.html

Not sure what the CBC has to gain by this, but with the funds in play here the stakes are extremely high. Perhaps Subway just wants the CBC to back down or settle, who knows. But they've taken great pains to defend themselves against these claims. 

What I don't like is the fact that taxpayer funds might be used to defend a mediocre investigative reporting show. 

.....or chill litigation doesn't work on a gov't entity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 minutes ago, Boges said:

The tests administered for CBC were done by independent and credible experts, she added.

The CBC reported on the tests...  you think they should be afraid of reporting the truth because a corporation might sue?  That's a great freee and independent press...  report on things that make all the corporations happy...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, The_Squid said:

The CBC reported on the tests...  you think they should be afraid of reporting the truth because a corporation might sue?  That's a great freee and independent press...  report on things that make all the corporations happy...

Assuming that's the truth. Subway has said those claims were inaccurate. It would be a fascinating court case if government funds weren't at stake. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, Boges said:

Assuming that's the truth. Subway has said those claims were inaccurate. It would be a fascinating court case if government funds weren't at stake. 

It's not interesting at all save for the gov't angle.  Press has made a claim based on best possible diligent evidence......corp doesn't need anymore bad press (eg Vogel).  Yawn.  The only thing that is interesting is Subway likely thinks gov't doesn't want to be in court over this and will settle early.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, ?Impact said:

Do you own stock in a mediocre fast food chain, or have one of their franchises, Jared?

Referring to me as a convicted pedophile must be against forum rules. 

I'm not a huge fan of Subway, but they seem to be stridently defending these claims. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Subway really had no choice but to sue. Anyone familiar with accounting would know that a company's "goodwill" is an intangible asset that needs protection. It is is extremely important to a company's reputation and resale value.

Quote

Goodwill

Goodwill is a type of intangible business asset. It is defined as the difference between the fair market value of a company's assets (less its liabilities) and the market price or asking price for the overall company. In other words, goodwill is the amount in excess of the company's book value that a purchaser would be willing to pay to acquire it. A combination of advertising, research, management talent, and timing may give a particular company a dominant market position for which another company is willing to pay a high price. This ability to command a premium price for a business is the result of goodwill. If a sale is realized, the new owner of the company lists the difference between book value and the price paid as goodwill in financial statements.

The sale of a business may involve a number of intangible assets. Some of these may be specifically identifiable intangibles—such as trademarks, patents, copyrights, licensing agreements—that can be assigned a value. The remaining intangibles—which may include the business's reputation, brand names, customer lists, unique market position, knowledge of new technology, good location, and special skills or operating methods—are usually lumped into the category of goodwill. Although these factors that contribute to goodwill do not necessarily have an assignable value, they nonetheless add to the overall value of the business by convincing the purchaser that the company will be able to generate abnormally high future earnings.

http://www.inc.com/encyclopedia/goodwill.html

I would not be surprised to learn that damages for loss of "goodwill" are contained in the Statement of Claim filed by Subway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Boges said:

Perhaps Subway just wants the CBC to back down or settle, who knows. But they've taken great pains to defend themselves against these claims. 

I would hope that Subway had completely independent tests done. And I can't imagine that CBC doesn't also have lawyers who vet these things before they go on air. 

The battle, it seems, will be between the two testing companies, or about the Subway manager who delivered the samples or the CBC aide who was told to take them to ABC Science Lab Inc.

Edited by hot enough
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Quote

Should the taxpayer be on the hook for the CBC's reporting?

They wo0n't have a choice.  If the Court finds for Subway and awards them $200 million, CBC will have to pay.  If they cannot, then money can come from the govt, or from the sale of CBC assets.  If they had to pay the award themselves, it would bankrupt the CBC. Since the CBC really has nothing worth anywhere near that much except perhaps a few buildings.......  A successful lawsuits might be ultimately a win-win: for Subway and for taxpayers by getting rid of this massive turkey.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On Friday, March 17, 2017 at 4:44 PM, hot enough said:

I would hope that Subway had completely independent tests done. And I can't imagine that CBC doesn't also have lawyers who vet these things before they go on air. 

The battle, it seems, will be between the two testing companies, or about the Subway manager who delivered the samples or the CBC aide who was told to take them to ABC Science Lab Inc.

Exactly.  So for Subway to win they would have to show that there was bad faith on the part of the media.....ie. didn't contact for a rebuttal, knew the chain of custody for their tests were tampered, etc.  This is Canada.....trying to collect on slander ain't that easy like down south.  See the Beaches restaurant vs Rob Ford.  Apparently you claim bribery with no evidence.....ruin a guy and become mayor.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 years later...

"The broadcaster is seeking to dismiss the case under Ontario's so-called anti-SLAPP (strategic lawsuits against public participation) law. The legislation allows a defendant to ask the court to dismiss a lawsuit if they can show it was initiated to shield the plaintiff from criticism and stymie free speech on a matter of public interest.

"The public interest in protecting the CBC defendants' freedom of expression far outweighs benefits of allowing Subway to proceed with this lawsuit," reads the notice of motion, filed May 31 in Ontario Superior Court.

The motion to dismiss is scheduled to be heard in court on Sept. 24."

------

This motion would only work, assuming what CBC said was true....

Edited by J4L
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Tell a friend

    Love Repolitics.com - Political Discussion Forums? Tell a friend!
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      10,713
    • Most Online
      1,403

    Newest Member
    nyralucas
    Joined
  • Recent Achievements

    • Jeary earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Venandi went up a rank
      Apprentice
    • Gaétan earned a badge
      Very Popular
    • Dictatords earned a badge
      First Post
    • babetteteets earned a badge
      One Year In
  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...