Wholesale appeal is on shaky legal footing, TekSavvy argues

The ongoing appeal by incumbent telecoms of the CRTC's wholesale internet rates decision from August should be dismissed because the appeal argues that the regulator made errors in fact, rather than errors in law and jurisdiction, according to a Tuesday filing from TekSavvy Solutions Inc. According to the argument made by TekSavvy, the Telecommunications Act only allows for appeals of CRTC decisions on grounds of questions of law or jurisdiction. Those bringing the appeal -- BCE Inc., Rogers Communications Inc., Cogeco Inc., Quebecor Inc.'s Videotron, Shaw Communications Inc., and Bragg Communications Inc. -- have "not raised any questions of law or jurisdiction that are properly before this Court in this statutory appeal," TekSavvy argues. "They raise a myriad of issues that are strictly questions of fact, or questions of mixed fact and law from which no questions of law can be extricated." TekSavvy also disputed the argument offered by the appellants, that the decision violates a 2006 Maxime Bernier-era policy directive to the CRTC to "rely on market forces to the maximum extent feasible as the means of achieving the telecommunications policy objectives." TekSavvy says that in bringing up the 2006 policy directive, the appellants are operating on the "mistaken premise that the CRTC was required to provide additional reasons as to how the policy objectives under the Act were met." There is no such requirement, TekSavvy argues. Even if the decision were sent back to the CRTC by the court, TekSavvy's argument continues, the new policy directive from 2019 would apply. That directive asks the CRTC to put "competition, affordability, consumer interests and innovation” at the center of its decision making. The August order "as it stands fully promotes those objectives. Accordingly, this appeal should be dismissed," TekSavvy argues. The long-simmering dispute over wholesale rates -- which is being fought before the Federal Court of Appeal, the cabinet, and the CRTC in a review-and-vary application -- has flared up again in the last week. On Monday, TekSavvy called on the CRTC to put in place emergency wholesale tariffs amid the surge in demand caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, after the company laid off staff and raised prices. The previous week, Conservative member of parliament and her party's Industry critic Michelle Rempel Garner went further, calling on Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains to “issue an emergency COVID-19 directive to the big telcos to respect the August 2019 rate decision.” Earlier this month, the judge in the appeal said the case could proceed according to schedule, despite the disruptions cause by COVID-19, and a hearing could still take place in June.

Wholesale appeal is on shaky legal footing, TekSavvy argues

Brief | April 16, 2020

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Wholesale appeal is on shaky legal footing, TekSavvy argues

Brief | April 16, 2020

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