UCP suing 2 of its former MLAs as skirmish over Progressive Conservative brand continues

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.

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.  

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.