SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - An NWT Supreme Court judge ruled on July 30 a lawsuit against Bell Mobility by two Yellowknife men can go ahead as a class-action suit.

James Anderson and his son Samuel started the action against the telecommunications company in 2007 after raising concerns Bell Mobility was charging a 911 service fee when no such service was provided in the NWT.

When NWT residents dial 911, they get a message saying that the service is not available and to hang up and dial a local emergency line.

In the July 30 ruling, Justice Ron Veale decided the class-action suit would pertain only to residents of the NWT, and not to residents in areas of the Yukon, Nunavut, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia.

In the document outlining the reasons for his decision, Veale stated he did not have enough information to include the other regions in the suit.

"I am adjourning this issue to be considered when there is more evidence ... as to the identification and circumstances of the non-resident claimants," he wrote.

James Anderson said he's pleased with Veale's decision.

"We're very, very grateful for that and hope that it can now move on to the next phase," he said, though he said he's not sure there will be a next step.

"We have no idea, first of all, if Bell is going to appeal the decision or not," he said.

Julie Smithers, spokesperson for Bell Canada, told Yellowknifer, "We are examining the judgment, and we will certainly continue with our defence."

She declined to comment on whether the company had plans to appeal the decision.

If the lawsuit goes forward, Anderson said Veale will stay on as the case management judge, and the two parties will have to work out a schedule and a means of getting the word out to NWT Bell customers that they're automatically included in the class action.

"We'll have to decide whether it's going to be an advertisement in newspapers, or whether it's going to be a monthly insert in Bell's invoices," he said.

Anderson said further work will have to be done to include other the other regions in the class-action suit.

"It's something our lawyers will have to work out with Bell to find out who these subscribers are outside of the NWT, and the type of plans they have, et cetera, to see if they can also be included in the class action," he said.

If it's decided these groups are, in fact, part of the class, they will be able to opt in to the lawsuit.

There are about 20,000 Bell Mobility customers in the NWT. Anderson said his lawyers believe that if other regions are included in the class action suit, as many as 50,000 people could be included.

When asked if he knew what he was getting into when he started the lawsuit, Anderson said he had no idea, but he knew it wouldn't be over quickly.

"I expect it will go on for a few years yet, to tell you the truth," he said. "Hopefully not, but I'm prepared for that, for sure."

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