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The United Conservative Party has launched a lawsuit against two of its former MLAs, alleging the duo and the Alberta Party have infringed on Progressive Conservative trademarks as they seek to relaunch the bygone party.
Peter Guthrie and Scott Sinclair announced plans in July to revive Alberta’s Progressive Conservative party, which was in power from 1971 to 2015 before merging with the Wildrose Party to form the United Conservative Party.
Later that month, Guthrie and Sinclair joined the centrist Alberta Party, announcing a plan to rebrand it as the Progressive Conservatives.
The membership of the Alberta Party voted to change the name to the Alberta Progressive Conservative Party in late August. In a statement, a spokesperson with Elections Alberta said it did not have an update on the status of that application at this time.
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A comeback for Alberta’s PC Party?
Two former UCP MLAs are trying to revive a political powerhouse from Alberta’s past. Peter Guthrie and Scott Sinclair announced plans to relaunch the Progressive Conservative Party, saying Premier Danielle Smith has abandoned centrist conservatives and that Albertans need an alternative to what they call her increasingly extreme leadership.
But the United Conservative Association, which operates the UCP, claims that through its unification with the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta in 2017, it assumed ownership of that party’s ”names, political party registration, brand, trademarks and goodwill.”
“The efforts [by the Alberta Party] … constitute passing-off and are plainly intended to capitalize on and usurp the goodwill and reputation that the PCAA and, in turn, the United Conservative Association have nurtured with Albertans for decades and continues to nurture today,” reads a statement of claim filed Nov. 7 in the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta.
The party is suing the Alberta Party Political Association, its president Lindsay Amantea, as well as Guthrie and Sinclair. The lawsuit was first reported on by the Globe and Mail.
“The United Conservative Association has suffered damages — including harm to its goodwill and reputation — as a result of the defendants passing-off on the PCAA name and associated goodwill,” the lawsuit reads.
Guthrie and Sinclair weren’t immediately available for comment Monday.
Rebrand attempt ‘misleading’: UCP
Guthrie, a former Alberta cabinet minister under Smith, was removed from the UCP in April after pushing for a public inquiry into health contracting.
In a video posted to X on Monday, Guthrie said the lawsuit is not about trademarks but represents an act of “intimidation” from the UCP.
“This isn’t about law; it’s about politics and fear — fear of competition and fear of a conservative movement that they can’t control,” Guthrie said. “And let’s be clear, Elections Alberta is the authority on elections law.”
Sinclair was expelled in March after saying he’d vote against the provincial budget.
In his video, Guthrie said the statement of claim falsely states he was removed from caucus for misconduct.
“The truth is, I raised concerns about misconduct and potential corruption at the highest levels of government, pushing, naturally, for transparency. Instead of addressing those concerns, senior officers tried to silence me,” Guthrie said. “So, I wasn’t removed for misconduct. I was removed because I wouldn’t participate in it.”
In the lawsuit, the United Conservative Association is seeking compensation and declarations that the three defendants engaged in a conspiracy and infringed on its trademarks.
None of the allegations have been tested in court.
Guthrie called the conspiracy allegation odd.
“The irony is hard to miss: a party known for chasing conspiracies is now trying to convince Albertans that everyone else is part of one,” he said in the video on X.
WATCH | Could the re-emergence of the PC party divide Alberta’s right?:
Could the re-emergence of the PC Party divide Alberta’s right? | The Political Panel
Two former UCP MLAs are trying to start a new political party under the old Progressive Conservative brand. Scott Sinclair and Peter Guthrie say the United Conservative Party is “way off base” with Albertans. The Political Panel weighs in on whether a revived PC Party could split the right-of-centre vote. Rob Brown is joined by Conservative strategist Erika Barootes, and Liberal strategist Sabrina Grover. Photo credit: X/PeterGuthrie99
The drive to breathe new life into the Progressive Conservative brand hasn’t been warmly received by the UCP.
The party sent a cease-and-desist letter to Guthrie and Sinclair in July, and another to the Alberta Party in September.
The Alberta Party’s attempt to rebrand under the Progressive Conservative banner is “misleading,” said Dave Prisco, the UCP’s director of communications.
“Neither of the MLAs involved were ever members of PC Alberta. For them to now try to steal that legacy without having earned it is an insult to the thousands of former PC members who built that party and who now contribute to the United Conservative Party,” Prisco wrote in a statement to CBC News on Monday.
“If the Alberta Party wants support, they should build their own movement. Instead, this is meant to mislead and confuse voters by claiming a history and name that isn’t theirs.”
A spokesperson for Alberta Premier Danielle Smith did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.