Canucks caught in fallout of nasty family lawsuit tied to sexual assault allegations

The Aquilini family, best known in Vancouver as owners of the Canucks, is caught up in a messy and very public family feud.

According to a new lawsuit, Matteo Aquilini, the son of Paolo Aquilini, claims his branch of the family has been cut out of the family empire in retaliation for speaking up about serious allegations of sexual assault within the family.

The Aquilinis aren’t just hockey owners; their empire spans real estate, agriculture, hospitality, and more, worth billions. But Matteo alleges that his father Paolo, who resigned as a co-owner of the Canucks earlier this year, and his siblings have been unfairly pushed aside.

At the center of the dispute is the Elisa Aquilini Family Trust, created by matriarch Elisa before her death back in 2015. Matteo claims patriarch Luigi Aquilini used Elisa’s vulnerable final days to restructure the trust, ultimately consolidating power for himself and his other two sons, Francesco and Roberto. This is all according to the latest report from the Vancouver CourtHouse News Service:

The lawsuit goes further, alleging that after accusations of childhood sexual assault surfaced against a member of Roberto’s family, Luigi, Roberto, and Francesco retaliated against Paolo’s side of the family by disinheriting them.

Matteo is now asking the courts to restore his family’s share of the trust and remove Luigi, Roberto, and Francesco from control.

So far, no comment from either the Aquilini Investment Group or Matteo’s legal team.

But this is quite the mess, a huge distraction for the Canucks amid training camp and weeks prior to the start of the 2025-26 season…