Ice hockey billionaires sued by family member in feud over fortune

2 hours ago 2

By Thomas Seal

September 23, 2025 — 5.50am

A young member of the clan that owns a business empire including Vancouver’s professional hockey team is suing his grandfather and two uncles over an alleged plot to “disinherit” him and his siblings.

Matteo Aquilini is suing his grandfather, Luigi Aquilini, who founded what’s now known as the Aquilini Investment Group after emigrating to Canada from Italy in the 1950s. Also named as defendants are two of Luigi’s sons, Roberto and Francesco Aquilini, according to a notice of civil claim filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia last week.

Players arrive for warm-ups during a Vancouver Canucks’ game in 2021 at Rogers Arena.

Francesco Aquilini is chairman of the National Hockey League’s Vancouver Canucks.

The court filing offers a rare glimpse at the opaque structure of a multibillion-dollar enterprise that’s famous in western Canada, but which is closely held by the family.

The documents tell the story of how the family’s wild success in Canada prompted the establishment of a trust in 1995 in the name of Luigi’s wife, Elisa, to benefit their three sons and many grandchildren, including Matteo.

But that trust was secretly hijacked by Luigi following Elisa’s death in 2015, and later used to cut out his other son, Paolo, who is Matteo’s father, and his descendants, according to the lawsuit. The allegations haven’t been tested in court.

The rift allegedly broke out after an allegation of sexual assault by a member of Paolo’s branch of the family against someone on Roberto’s side. The breach deepened with a subsequent claim by Paolo’s autistic son that he was bullied during his time working for the Canucks, and alleged threats of retribution by his uncles.

The defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment made through the Aquilini Investment Group and the Vancouver Canucks.

The allegations

The Aquilini family has sprawling interests across food, farming, construction and real estate, including golf clubs and the Rogers Arena, where the Canucks play, under a company called Aquilini Investment Group Limited Partnership.

Vancouver Canucks owners (from left) Paolo, Francesco and Roberto Aquilini.

Luigi’s three sons — Roberto, Francesco and Paolo — were equal general partners with 20 per cent each of Aquilini Investment Group, and the remaining 40 per cent was owned by a trust named for Luigi’s wife, Elisa, and meant to benefit their descendants, the suit claims.

The trust was reorganised in 2015, which involved creating a successor vehicle called the Luigi and Elisa Legacy Trust. But Luigi ultimately took control of trust assets, the filing claims, adding that Elisa was ill in hospital when she was asked to sign important documents.

Elisa died in June 2015, and the loss of her as “the calm centre” destabilised the once “closely integrated” family while the plaintiff Matteo was still a minor, according to the filing.

In 2020, Matteo says that a relative from his branch of the family told Paolo that they were sexually assaulted on a family vacation in 2007 or 2008, by a relative from Roberto’s part of the family, when both alleged perpetrator and victim were minors. This was one of “numerous” occasions throughout their childhood, according to the court filing, which granted anonymity to both.

Paolo recounted the allegations to his brothers and his father, but Roberto “decided to retaliate” from then on, supported by the other two men, the suit claims.

Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, founder of the Invictus Games Foundation with Vancouver Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini.

In 2022, Matteo’s autistic brother, Christian, filed a human rights complaint about bullying, discrimination and harassment while working for the Vancouver Canucks. The uncles threatened a workplace complaint or investigation against Christian, resulting in “severe emotional distress” that forced him to leave the company, Matteo’s suit said.

Matteo’s lawsuit said he learned of moves made by Luigi and his uncles to his detriment, changing provisions to position themselves as trust beneficiaries. Around July 2025, Matteo says he discovered that his uncles and grandfather may have already distributed some of the trust’s assets to themselves.

Matteo’s complaint concludes by arguing the manoeuvring does “violence” and seeks to “erase” the vision his grandmother had for her legacy. It seeks relief which could include “damages for breach of trust, breach of fiduciary duty, conspiracy and unjust enrichment”.

The Aquilini Group’s website describes the “stewards” of the company as Luigi, two of his three sons, Roberto and Francesco, and “several” of his grandchildren. It doesn’t mention Paolo Aquilini.

Bloomberg