Injured RCMP Officers and Military Class Action Suit gets Go Ahead

Soldiers and RCMP officers who were injured on the job have joined forces in a class action lawsuit against their former employer, who they say wrongly clawed back pension money.

The soldiers and RCMP officers who have been injured on the job have won the right to proceed with their joint class action suit against Canada's Federal Government. The lawyers, for the group, made the announcement yesterday in Halifax stating that the federal government owes hundreds of millions of dollars in pension money that it clawed back from their clients. The workers claim that the pension money was wrongfully clawed back by the government. A suit by Dennis Mangue launched the class action. Mangue recentlysued the government for clawing back pension money after he was awarded a disability allowance. He had been a mechanic and had broken his back when he fell off a big vehicle he was working on. "The effect of that decision can't be underestimated," lawyer Peter Driscoll said. "It changed the litigation from one man versus the government of Canada claiming the return of $10,000, to a claim involving 4,300 disabled veterans for compensation that is estimated to be in the range of $200 to $300 million." Manuge's legal victory has also spawned the possibility of a whole new round of claims from injured RCMP officers. "Today we have filed a similar action on behalf of Gerry Buote, a disabled former member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Unfortunately, Gerry can't join us today. He has been totally and permanently disabled since 1993," Driscoll said. Buote is from Summerside, Prince Edward Island and was injured during a confrontation with a drunk driver. Buote started to receive disability benefits in 1997; however, he says that hundreds of dollars were deducted from each cheque. Buote may be owed more than $140,000 and believes hundreds of other former Mounties are in the same situation. Buote is the first Mountie to make a claim, but Driscoll expects many others to join in as the fight goes forward.