Certified: Class Actions in Ontario & Beyond

Robert Sharpe, recently-retired justice of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, talks about his landmark judgment in Jones v Tsige, 2012 ONCA 32, which recognized the tort of intrusion upon seclusion. He discusses the evolution of privacy law in Ontario since that judgment, specifically in the context of class actions, and predicts what the future might hold.

Naomi Loewith & Pierre-Jerome Bouchard of Omni Bridgeway discuss third-party litigation funding in this second episode on the subject, which takes a deeper dive into the various models, the ethical issues involved, and the future of litigation funding in Canada.

Jeremy Martin talks about his class action practice at Cassels Brock, and gives a view of products liability and consumer cases from the defendant's perspective. Crisis management, damage control, and preventing a potential class action are all in a day's work.

Golnaz Nayerahmadi, partner at Rochon Genova, discusses the human rights class actions with which she has been involved. She has travelled the globe to meet with victims and witnesses, and contended with complex issues of jurisdiction, conflicts of law, international law, and corporate and Crown liability.

Katherine Kay, a partner at Stikemans, discusses the evolving jurisprudence in securities and competition law class actions. In a lively and forthright interview, she also considers the extent to which these class actions compensate class members and/or modify the behaviour of defendants.

Glenn Zakaib, national co-chair of the Class Actions Group at BLG, discusses the challenges inherent in multi-jurisdictional class actions and how courts, litigators and legislators have attempted to overcome them as class proceedings have spread across Canada.

Remissa Hirji, Associate Counsel to the Class Proceedings Committee, and Emilie Maxwell, Investment Manager at Augusta Ventures, discuss litigation funding in class actions. How can litigation funding support access to justice? What is the process and mechanism for securing and maintaining litigation funding? How do funders and lawyers address any ethical pitfalls? This episode looks at an emerging and exciting area that provides a key component to the future of class actions.

Justice Edward Belobaba, one of the class action judges at the Superior Court of Justice in Toronto, discusses settlement and fee approval as well as the recent changes to the Ontario Class Proceedings Act. This frank and engaging interview reveals His Honour's passion for access to justice and protecting the interests of class members.

Cheryl Woodin, Partner and Co-Head of the Class Actions Practice at Bennett Jones, discusses the various forms of relief in class actions - including aggregate damages (and the distribution of those damages), punitive damages, waiver of tort, restitution, and declaratory and injunctive relief.

Nicole Henderson discusses her experience on the St Jude class action trial, including the discovery process beforehand, coordinating with parallel US proceedings, use of expert witnesses, and how St Jude paved the way for the technological changes we're seeing in our civil justice system today.

Marg Waddell of Waddell Phillips talks about class member rights and the best ways of protecting them - as well as balancing those rights with the efficiencies promised by class actions. The discussion encompasses opt-out rights, notice requirements, and the changes brought about by Bill 161.

This special UK episode discusses the recent decision in Mastercard v Merricks, in which the UK Supreme Court gave the green light to competition law class actions. We hear from Walter Merricks, the class representative, and Stephen Wisking, a leading solicitor in the area. They discuss the case itself, other competition law cases, and the influence of Canadian jurisprudence on class actions in the UK.

Mike Robb of Siskinds discusses representation in class actions: the role of counsel and their duty to the class, intra-class and other conflicts, and the importance of representative plaintiffs.

Tina Yang of Waddell Phillips takes us through Ontario's certification test, how the courts have interpreted each of its criteria, and how that works out in her practice.

Jon Foreman and Mohsen Seddigh discuss the recent amendments to the CPA brought about by Bill 161, and especially the predominance and superiority changes to certification. How disastrous are those changes? Have we put a wrench in the engine of class actions? What does the future hold? Jon and Mo answer these questions with clear analysis and good humour.

Mike Peerless discusses the beauty-parading, mud-slinging world of carriage motions. Are they a good thing? Do courts apply clear and consistent criteria? Will the recent changes to the CPA make any difference, or should we use Quebec's first-to-file rule? And why can't we all just get along?

Janet Walker and Barry Glaspell discuss recent decisions on jurisdiction and conflicts of law, including Uber v Heller and Araya v Nevsun Resources, as well as the multi-jurisdictional aspects of recent changes to the Ontario Class Proceedings Act.

Chantelle Cseh discusses pre-certification motions, who brings them and why, and how the new section 4.1 of the Ontario Class Proceedings Act could bring some interesting changes.

Professor Jasminka Kalajdzic goes behind the scenes of the Law Commission of Ontario Report on Class Actions, discusses the recent changes to the Ontario Class Proceedings Act that included many of the Report's recommendations, and what further reforms she would like to see.

Professor Michael Legg of the UNSW Law Faculty in Sydney tells us how class actions are done differently in Australia - including closed classes, common fund orders, an aversion to cy-pres and the goal of behaviour modification, and recent politically-charged debates around the role of litigation funders.