It is finally pay day for shareholders who won a $2.4-billion (U.S.) global class-action settlement from Nortel Networks Corp. two years ago.

Cash cheques and share certificates shipped out in two separate mailings are now en route to an estimated 145,000 Canadian claimants, including thousands of Quebecers, Daniel Belleau of Montreal’s Belleau Lapointe LLP said yesterday.

The cash-and-share settlement, whose value has dropped to roughly $1.2 billion (U.S.) because of the subsequent descent of Nortel’s share price, is one of the largest in class action history.

Belleau Lapointe, working along with Montreal’s Unterberg, Labelle, Lebeau LLP, successfully represented so-called Nortel I shareholders who purchased shares from Oct. 24, 2000, to Feb. 15, 2001. Montreal’s Trudel & Johnston LLP represented the Nortel II group of people who bought shares from April 24, 2003 and April 27, 2004.

But while shareholders are finally getting their due, the Quebec plaintiff lawyers on the Nortel file are involved in a court action over how much they will be paid for their work. Separately, one of the groups of lawyers who worked on the two Nortel case in the New York jurisdiction is appealing how much it will be paid.

Part of the June 2006 settlement of the Nortel claim was a stipulation that a maximum of 9.9 per cent of the settlement fund could be allocated for counsel fees. Counsel agreed at that time to break that maximum down to 8.5 per cent for the U.S. counsel, 0.7 per cent for Ontario counsel, 0.45 per cent for Quebec counsel and 0.25 per cent for British Columbia.

On that basis, and the value of Nortel shares at that time, the Quebec law firms arguing on behalf of Nortel claimants in their jurisdiction would have been paid about $10 million in cash and shares (now closer to $6 million because of the lower share price.)

Challenging how much Quebec lawyers will be paid is the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, lead plaintiff in the class action along with the Department of Treasury of the State of New Jersey and its division of investment. Both are being represented by Laurent Nahmiash of Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP in Montreal.

The investment funds had gone so far as to demand full access to the time sheets of both firms, a move that was challenged on the grounds that that would be a violation of professional secrecy. That case was lost in the Quebec Court of appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada later decided not to grant leave of appeal.

Meanwhile, Ontario lawyers involved in the Nortel file have already agreed to accept lower fees than the allotted percentage.

The need for final court determination of the Quebec lawyers’ fees and those in a still ongoing New York court appeal, along with final rulings on a tiny percentage of disputed claims, are the reason why 10% of the global settlement fund is being withheld for a final distribution to shareholders later on.

“No one wanted any further delays in the distribution of the settlement to Nortel shareholders,” said Belleau. “All told, the distribution is proceeding well, given that it is the one of the largest settlements ever and that all of the claims (including contested and late claims) had to be reviewed because the distribution is on a pro-rata basis (meaning claim awards are based on the total amount of those accepted as valid).

It is now up to Quebec Superior Court Justice Michèle Monast to decide on the exact amount Quebec lawyers acting for Nortel will receive following yet-to-be scheduled hearings on the matter.

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Next Wednesday and Thursday two Quebec Superior Court judges and three lawyers from three Montreal law firms will put aside the serious part of their job to become comedic actors in two gala performances to help Montreal’s Geordie Productions, the 25-year-old professional theatre company that brings the magic of the stage to 80,000 children, teachers and parents each year (www.geordie.ca) Acting in the production of Bedtime Stories, a comedy by Canadian playwright Norm Foster, are: judges J.F. Buffoni and Brian Riordan, both of the Quebec Superior Court; Adam Barza of McCarthy Tétrault LLP; Vincent Prager, Stikeman Elliott LLP; Sarah Woods, Woods LLP.

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BCF LLP’s Hubert Sibre, a business lawyer who specializes in high risk situations, has been named Young Professional of the Year, one of eight Arista awards organized by the Young Chamber of Commerce of Montreal to honour “creative, audacious, involved” people from the age of 18 to 40 active in different fields of business. Sibre, a one-time in-house lawyer with National Bank of Canada, is co-ordinator of BCF’s restructuring and insolvency group.

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Fasken Martineau LLP has recruited lawyer Mathieu Fortier, formerly with Lavery, de Billy LLP LLP, to join its team as business development advisor. Fortier, who formally begins his new assignment next Tuesday, will devote most of his time to helping young lawyers on the Fasken team design and execute their personal business development plans.

Also on the legal marketing front, Nicolas Rubbo has left behind four years as the marketing manager for the Montreal office of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP to become director of marketing and communications for the Quebec region at McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Montreal. Rubbo takes over the job from Nathalie Lachance who becomes national director of marketing and communications for the firm.