Winnipeg immigration consultant seeks to have permanent residency lawsuit tossed

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This article was published 29/11/2023 (690 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg-based immigration consultant being sued by a man from India who claims his guidance and an alleged failure to submit paperwork jeopardized the man’s status in Canada is seeking to have the lawsuit tossed, saying the court has no jurisdiction to hear the claim.

In late May, Coal Harbour Law of Vancouver (on behalf of Karm Singh Gill) filed a lawsuit against Canadian Pathway Immigration Services and Suraj Jasra in Manitoba’s Court of King’s Bench.

In court documents filed in the months since the initial statement of claim, Jasra denies all of the allegations and denies personally providing Gill any professional services.

In the statement of claim, Gill says he retained the consultant’s services in December 2019, and the alleged problems began after he took a job at a Winnipeg trucking company after being authorized as a temporary resident in February 2022.

The company was prepared to sponsor Gill through the provincial nominee program’s express pathway to permanent residence, which includes a work permit application, Gill’s claim says.

Court documents say Gill retained the consultant to curate and submit the applications to Immigration and Refugee and Citizenship Canada.

Gill applied to the provincial program and got an acknowledgement of the application in September 2022, then applied for a work permit. His lawsuit alleges Jasra failed to pay a standard compliance fee of $230, and Gill’s work permit was refused two weeks later.

Gill further alleges the consultant submitted a request for a new work permit and told him he could continue to work while the application was processed. (Working without authorization can result in a ban from the country.)

The trucker says he was sent a letter in March 2023 from the federal immigration agency questioning his legal and working status, and alleges in his claim the consultant then said he believed Gill was working for cash.

A June statement of defence and counterclaim says the corporate entity Jasra is president of did render Gill services. The counterclaim seeks payment for those services and to recoup resulting legal costs related to the lawsuit (about $25,000).

Jasra’s counterclaim references media reporting (including that of the Free Press) on the original statement of claim, alleging it caused him harm.

In an August court filing, Gill’s lawyer denies most of the allegations in the counterclaim and asked it be dismissed.

In a November affidavit, Jasra claims Gill — who remains in Canada without status — lives out of the Manitoba court’s jurisdiction. Further, he alleges Gill’s complaints to the immigration consultant governing body have been rejected, as of Nov. 6.

The document claims Gill intends to leave Canada as a result of that rejection.

Jasra’s Winnipeg-based lawyer filed a notice of motion seeking to have the court dismiss the case and award costs Nov. 21, in part on the grounds Gill is not a resident of Manitoba.

The hearing was adjourned until Dec. 5.

erik.pindera@freepress.mb.ca