PUC board backs CEO amid lawsuit and fight over records request

In a statement, the PUC board says it has full confidence in president and CEO Robert Brewer, who is being sued by his former company for 'unlawfully' pocketing almost $250,000 in bid money

PUC's decision to fight a public records request in court should give the public pause, says the journalist who requested those documents, especially as the head of the utility is being sued by his former company for allegedly taking nearly $250,000. Freelancing for Sault This Week, researcher and journalist Dax D'Orazio began digging into the business dealings of PUC a number of years ago before threats of a lawsuit derailed his story. "As a part of my research, I also wanted to learn more about the PUC's corporate culture, including what its President and CEO, Rob Brewer, was doing before he found himself at the helm.

I had heard rumours about his previous business ventures and that's why I started looking into that," D'Orazio explained. D'Orazio made the public records request to PUC through the Freedom of Information Act for the release of energy contracts and internal emails. As a public utility, D'Orazio argues, the PUC has a responsibility to be open and transparent and allow for public records requests.

"Transparency isn't something that's offered to the public as a courtesy. It's something we need to demand and fight for," said D'Orazio in an interview. When he learned about the lawsuit by Wilderness Environmental Services, D'Orazio also reached out to Mayor Matthew Shoemaker and members of the PUC board to inform them about the allegations against him.

That resulted in a threatening letter from Brewer's lawyer, Marc Huneault, sent on Dec. 8, 2022. "Brewer's lawyer objected to my description of the allegations in the lawsuit — using words like 'fraud' and 'defrauded' — and informed me that Brewer was considering legal action," said D'Orazio. The threats of legal action were enough to kill the story at the time.

"It was frustrating because I knew the story was in the public interest but the paper simply couldn't marshal additional resources to publish it," said D'Orazio. In a current civil lawsuit, a judge recently ordered Brewer to release his unredacted personal financial records as part of a years-long legal case, brought on by the current owners of his former company. "Mr. Brewer, despite his responsibility to maintain documents during the course of the litigation, failed to keep copies of the records, whether redacted or unredacted.

Given that Wilderness is effectively alleging fraud against Mr. Brewer, this is a troubling development," said Justice Michael Varpio in his recent decision. Court records obtained by SooToday reveal Brewer is the target of a years-long lawsuit launched by U.S.-based Lewis Tree Service — which purchased an 80-per-cent stake in WES in 2013 — alleging he "perpetrated a scheme" that secretly converted more than $250,000 of the company's money to his own account between 2014 and 2018. The allegation has not been tested in court and no criminal charges have ever been announced.

After those legal threats, D'Orazio said it is vindicating to see the judge overseeing the case using the same word – 'fraud' – to describe the allegations. "A reasonable person reading the same legal records would probably describe the allegations in precisely the same way. It's important not to presume whether or not the allegations will be substantiated through the legal process, but we ought to be able to describe them accurately in public."

Paul Skeggs, vice-chair of the PUC Services board, said the board hired an independent third-party specialist based in Toronto to conduct a thorough review of the matter between Brewer and his former company. "The independent review confirmed that the matter is personal in nature, occurred before Mr. Brewer joined PUC Services and has no connection to PUC Services or its governance," said Skeggs in an email. He added: "The board remains fully confident in Mr. Brewer in his role as president and CEO of PUC Services.

The board stands firmly behind him." Skeggs declined to comment on the judicial review PUC's lawyers initiated to fight the Freedom of Information request. "That review is regarding a technical matter on whether PUC Services fits the definition of a public institution.

We remain committed to respecting that process," he said. D'Orazio notes that, because the PUC is wholly owned by the City of Sault Ste. Marie, the taxpayers are actually on the line to pay for the legal battle against releasing the documents.

"The case now raises potential conflict of interest issues, as the PUC is using Mayor Shoemaker's law firm for the judicial review process and the city routinely appoints Mayor Shoemaker to be its proxy vote at PUC shareholder meetings. Because Mayor Shoemaker is a partner in the firm, he may have an indirect pecuniary interest associated with the case," D'Orazio said. When SooToday reached out to Shoemaker for comment, he said he sought legal guidance from the city's integrity commissioner about the subject prior to running for the mayor's seat.

"The integrity commissioner’s opinion was clear that a conflict would arise where there is an expectation that my law firm would be retained or involved in the matter being considered by council. However, where an organization that has used my firm has an issue before Council that is unrelated to any work being performed by my firm, the opinion concluded that no conflict exists," Shoemaker said. PUC is scheduled to make a presentation to city council tonight.