Class Actions

In 2014, data breach occurrences have increased by approximately 30%. As web-based services become more prominent, protection against and remedies for breaches of privacy will become necessary. Does class action litigation have a place in this shifting landscape? Introduction During the firs…

The Supreme Court has declined leave to appeal in Wakelam v. Wyeth Consumer Healthcare. The decision means that the far-reaching findings of the British Columbia Court of Appeal in the areas of consumer protection, competition and restitution law, are permitted to stand. It also means that a…

In Canada, class actions are supervised closely by the courts, which are obligated to protect the rights of absent class members. Accordingly, all of the major steps in class actions litigation require court approval. If there are questions about the conduct of a class action, affected parti…

For over 20 years, securities class actions in the U.S. have relied on the ‘fraud-on-the-market’ theory of reliance for investors. This was established by the 1988 case Basic Inc v Levinson. Recently some have question this theory. Earlier this week the Supreme Court released its decision in…

In her forthcoming article, The “Illusion of Compensation”: Cy près Distributions in Canadian Class Actions, class actions scholar, Professor Jasminka Kalajdzic, brings to comprehensive light the rather desultory state of cy près settlement jurisprudence in Canada.1 Professor Kalajdzic notes…

Class actions are commenced on behalf of individuals (called “class members”) who all have the same, or similar, claims for damages. If you think that you may be affected by a class action, it is important to preserve certain evidence that could be helpful in making a claim in the class acti…

On February 27, 2014, the Supreme Court of Canada granted leave to appeal the decision of the Manitoba Court of Appeal in Meeking v Cash Store Inc, 2013 MBCA 81. Meeking partially enforced an order approving the settlement of a class action by the Ontario Superior Court that determined the r…

Introduction In a succession of decisions issued in November 2013, Justice Belobaba articulated a new framework for determining the appropriate level of costs to be awarded on class action certification motions.1  Citing the fundamental objective of access to justice, Belobaba J. expressed a…

On February 3, 2014, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision Green v Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. This decision set aside the Court’s previous interpretation of the leave process under Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act with respect to the limitation period. In doing…

On December 12, 2013, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in AIC Limited v Fischer, 2013 SCC 69, which provides very useful guidance on the preferable procedure requirement for certification, particularly on the meaning of access to justice in the preferability analysis. On Dec…