Manning is seeking $200,000 in damages
He’s cast Senate votes regularly over the past two years, and chairs the standing committee on fisheries and oceans.
The statement of claim, filed June 9, 2017 ( just inside the two- year statute of limitations), targets the House of Commons, Public Works and Government Services Canada, and the Attorney General of Canada as the Crown’s representative.
It says the House of Commons and the public works department are the “owner and occupier” of Centre Block, and therefore “responsible for the general condition, safety, maintenance, and control of this area.” It raises numerous scenarios of alleged negligence.
The l awsuit does not mention the Senate as an occupant of Centre Block, but it’s the House of Commons t hat operates t he cafeteria and dining room.
The document says Manning suffered injuries which have “caused and will continue to cause a reduced capacity to perform the essential tasks of his work as a member of the Senate or any other occupation he is reasonably suited for.”
Manning is s uing f or $ 200,000, plus an unspecified amount of s pecial
WILL CAUSE A REDUCED CAPACITY TO PERFORM THE ESSENTIAL TASKS OF HIS WORK AS A MEMBER OF THE SENATE.
damages for loss of income-earning capacity, l oss of household and handyman capacity, and costs of care.
His wife, Sandra Manning, is suing for $ 50,000 due to the “impact that Fabian Manning’s i njuries have had on her relationship with him, including the loss of companionship.” She’s also suing for unspecified special damages for the cost of caring for him.
Manning served as a municipal councillor and as an MHA in the Newfoundland and Labrador legislature before coming to Ottawa as a Conservative MP in 2006.
He was appointed to the Senate in 2009, but resigned his seat to run as an MP in the 2011 election. He lost, and was then reappointed to the Senate.
This is not t he first health scare Manning’s had since coming to Ottawa. Shortly after his reappointment in May 2011, he was delayed taking his seat after his car hit a moose near his rural Newfoundland home. The vehicle had extensive damage, though Manning’s niece told the National Post at the time the senator had suffered only minor cuts.
The moose did not survive.