City facing $33 million lawsuit for scrapping Formula E races

The organizations behind Montreal's controversial Formula E electric car race have filed a lawsuit against the City of Montreal and its mayor, Valrie Plante, seeking $33 million in damages.

Plaintiffs Montral, c'est lectrique, the non-profit organization responsible for the event, and Formula E Operations Limited, the company that runs the circuit,claim the non-profit was forced to breachits obligations as a result of Plante's decision to cancel further editions of the race.

The 66-page lawsuit was filed Thursday in Quebec Superior Court.

Former mayor Denis Coderre had signed a contract to have Formula E races in Montreal between 2017 and 2019.

But the inaugural version of the event was heavily criticized for its downtown location, which inconvenienced residents, and its cost to taxpayers.

In December, a month after being elected mayor, Plante followed through on her campaign promise to scrap further races, which she said were heading toward "financial fiasco."

"Montrealershave made it clear that we can't waste their money on poorly planned projects that don't serve them,"Plantesaid at the time.

Formula E issued a statement in response, saying it was "surprised and disappointed" by what they called a unilateral decision taken by the Plante administration.

See you in court, Plante administration says

In response to the lawsuit filed Thursday, Plante's administration issued a statement rejecting the claims made by Formula E.

"We intend to challenge them," the statement reads.

The city mentioned a damning report from Montreal's inspector general that concludedCoderreignored the advice of the city's own lawyers and circumvented rules in creatingMontral,c'estlectriqueto run the event.

"We are convinced that we made the right decision for Montreal taxpayers," the city's statement reads.

The city said it wouldn't comment further since the issue is now before the courts.