Matteo Aquilini, the son of former Vancouver Canucks co-owner Paolo Aquilini, has filed a lawsuit in British Columbia Supreme Court. He alleges that his grandfather, Luigi Aquilini, manipulated a family trust to exclude some grandchildren from financial benefits intended for them by their grandmother, Elisa Aquilini.

The lawsuit states that Luigi and Elisa established the Elisa Aquilini Family Trust in 1995. This trust was designed to benefit their descendants and was meant to be managed independently of Luigi. According to the suit, "Its express purpose was to benefit their children and grandchildren, which includes the plaintiff, Matteo Aquilini. The terms of the trust were carefully crafted to prevent Luigi from ever benefiting or coming to control the trust property."

However, the lawsuit claims that shortly before Elisa's death in 2015, Luigi reorganized the trust to name himself as both trustee and beneficiary. He allegedly did this with the assistance of his sons, Francesco and Roberto, who are also owners of the Vancouver Canucks. Paolo Aquilini was a co-owner of the team until he left the partnership earlier this year.

The restructured trust is referred to as the Luigi and Elisa Aquilini Legacy Trust (LEALT). The lawsuit asserts that this new trust was intended to continue the principles of the original Elisa Trust for the benefit of the grandchildren. Yet, it claims that Luigi took actions to control the trust property for his own benefit.

The lawsuit names Luigi, Roberto, and Francesco Aquilini as defendants. It seeks to restore the original provisions of the Elisa Trust, remove the three men as trustees, and appoint independent trustees. None of the allegations have been proven in court.

The suit alleges that after Elisa's death, Luigi and his sons misused their control over the LEALT to disinherit Matteo and his siblings. It states, "This started with Luigi, Francesco, and Roberto excluding Paolo from the business in February of 2020. Later, they engaged in a concerted and covert scheme to exclude the plaintiff from all manner of distributions and benefits from the LEALT."

Further claims in the lawsuit, which remain untested in court, indicate that in January 2024, Luigi moved to exclude most of Francesco's children, born to his ex-wife Taliah, as well as Matteo and Paolo's three other children, from the trust's benefits. The suit alleges that Luigi created an exclusionary document that only he can revoke, effectively disinheriting some grandchildren while keeping them listed as beneficiaries.

The Aquilini family, through the Aquilini Investment Group, has built a significant business empire across Canada and the United States. Luigi Aquilini emigrated from Italy in 1954, and the family has since developed interests in property development, rental apartments, berry farms, hotels, restaurants, and viticulture. They acquired a 50% stake in the Canucks in 2004 and gained full ownership in 2007 after a contentious court battle with other property developers. The Canucks franchise is reportedly valued at $2 billion.

The Canucks organization has acknowledged the lawsuit but has not provided further comments. A request for comment was also made to NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, who has not yet responded.