Planet Fitness Inc v. Planet Fitness Franchising, 2025 FC 1713
Justice Fothergill - 2025-10-23
Read full decision. Automatically generated summary:
The Plaintiff Planet Fitness Inc and its director have been found in contempt of Court (2025 FC 840). These reasons address the penalty to be imposed ... pursuant to Rule 472 of the Federal Courts Rules. ... Briefly, Mr. Freeborn improperly disclosed information he obtained in the course of a confidential mediation, in violation of an order or process of the Court. ... In the videos, he discussed particulars of the Defendants’ settlement offers, Associate Judge Crinson’s preliminary assessment of the merits of the case, and what expert and other witnesses would say if they were called to testify at trial. He also made disparaging and threatening remarks about the Defendants, their officers, and legal counsel. ... There appears to be no precedent for the imposition of a penalty for contempt arising from a breach of confidentiality in a court-ordered mediation. ... Having regard to all of the relevant factors, the Court considers a fine of $1,000 to be appropriate. This is at the lower end of the range established by the jurisprudence, but nevertheless marks the gravity of the contempt. Mr. Freeborn is to be commended for his expressions of remorse and continued respect for the courts in Canada.
Decision relates to:
- T-724-21 - Planet Fitness Inc. v. Planet Fitness Franchising LLC, Also known as PFIP, L