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Elevator Class Action

IMPORTANT NOTE:

This website has been developed to provide general information to potential class members on a number of class actions that have been commenced by Paliare Roland Rosenberg Rothstein LLP.

The site is not designed to answer questions about your individual situation or entitlement. Do not rely upon the information provided on this website as legal advice in respect of your individual situation nor use it as a substitute for individual legal advice.

The information collected about potential class members will assist counsel in prosecuting the class action and assessing what damages were suffered by the class as a whole. Providing the information requested does not make you the client of Paliare Roland Rosenberg Rothstein LLP. The court will ultimately decide who will be included as a class member.

Status Update

This action has been certified as a class proceeding.  The certification order can be viewed here.  The Reasons for Decision on certification can be viewed here.  The Reasons of the Divisional Court can be viewed here.

The class includes:

all persons in Ontario who owned or own an elevating device that was fitted with a traction motor brake, known as a sheave jammer or sheave brake, designed, manufactured, sold or installed by any of the Defendants, that was replaced as required by TSSA Directorâs Order 207/06 with an alternative form of emergency ACO and UCM protection and incurred remediation expenses as a result

If you are a class member who owned an elevator when it had a sheave jammer replaced pursuant to TSSA Director’s Order 207/06, it is important that you continue to preserve documentation that you have which may be relevant to these proceedings.

Examples of documentation that you might have include documents pertaining to:

  1. purchase and installation contracts for the elevators;
  2. the purchase and replacement of sheave jammers, including proof of payment for the replacement;
  3. your elevator maintenance contract that was in force at the time of the replacement of the sheave jammers;
  4. elevator maintenance records and log books; and 
  5. any incident reports relating to the sheave jammers.

You may forward any such documentation to our offices, otherwise you should keep it in a safe place, as these documents will be important to prove the quantum of your loss if the claim succeeds in proving the defendants are liable for the losses.

For additional information, or to provide details of your experience in replacing the ThyssenKrupp sheave jammers, please email info@elevatorclassaction.com.

This website will be updated when significant events occur in this proceeding.

Last Updated: January 2012

The Nature of the Claim

The ThyssenKrupp companies designed, manufactured, sold and installed in traction elevators an emergency traction motor brake known as a “sheave jammer” or “sheave brake”.  By order of the Technical Standards Safety Authority, dated December 2006, all owners of elevating devices in Ontario containing the ThyssenKrupp sheave jammers have replaced or must replace the sheave jammers with alternate emergency braking devices.

As a result, anyone with an affected elevator is or was required to replace the sheave jammer.

This class proceeding alleges that the ThyssenKrupp companies, and not the elevator owner/operators, should be responsible for the costs associated with the sheave jammer replacements.

The claim alleges that the defendants were negligent in the design, manufacture and installation of sheave jammers, and seeks damages accordingly.  In addition, many class members had a long term service contract with ThyssenKrupp.  Despite these contracts, ThyssenKrupp charged the owner/operators for the costs associated with replacing the sheave jammers.  The claim also alleges breach of contract in relation to these class members.

Click here to view a copy of the Amended Fresh Amended Statement of Claim.

General Information on Class Proceedings

A class action is a lawsuit in which a representative plaintiff sues on behalf of a class of people who have similar claims.

Class members are not liable to pay any court costs if the action is unsuccessful. Legal fees are paid to counsel for the class on a contingency basis. This means that the legal fees are paid only if the lawsuit is resolved in favour of the class, either by settlement or judgment. If that happens, the fees will be paid out of the proceeds; but only after the amount is approved by the court.

If you own an elevating device that is or was fitted with a sheave jammer manufactured, sold or installed by the defendants, which requires replacement or was replaced as required by the TSSA safety orders, you are part of the proposed class.  You do not have to do anything to participate in the class action. If the class action is certified, you will automatically become a class member, and notice of certification will be published in a manner approved by the court.  The notice of certification will also include instructions regarding what you have to do, if you choose to opt out of the action.  Anyone who chooses to “opt out” of the class action is not bound by any settlement or judgment, and they do not get any of the proceeds of the action, if it is successful.

For more information about class actions, please see the “frequently asked questions” page on our website: http://www.paliareroland.com/classactions.asp.