A class action against an automobile manufacturer that was dismissed by a lower court was partially overturned by the Quebec Court of Appeal after it held that Mazda Canada Inc. failed to disclose “important information” to consumers in a timely manner.
Tobacco companies suffered a second legal setback in less than a month after the Quebec Court of Appeal ordered two cigarette makers to set aside nearly $1 billion in security, the largest ever in the province’s history, to ensure that money is available to pay victims who won a landmark $15.5 billion class action lawsuit earlier this year.
Tobacco companies lost another legal battle in Quebec after the appeal court sided with the provincial government in a ruling that opens the door province to sue tobacco companies to recover billions in healthcare costs related to smoking.
Three Canadian tobacco companies will not have to make an immediate $1.13 billion payment to Quebec smokers who won a landmark class action suit after the Quebec Court of Appeal held that the justification for the provisional execution is weak, the prejudice to the firms serious, and that the balance of convenience weighs in their favour.
A ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada that dismissed a proposed securities class action against a Montreal pharmaceutical company will likely make it more difficult for investors to launch these kinds of lawsuits in the future, say class action and securities lawyers.
A lower court ruling that classified class action members into distinct categories, and would have allowed class action defendants to obtain detailed contact information of “registered” members as well as would have authorized counsel of the class action defendants to meet with “unregistered” members was overturned by the Quebec Court of Appeal in a majority decision.
The Quebec Court of Appeal upheld a lower court ruling that could have a chilling effect on the flow and quality of confidential information financial institutions disclose to regulatory authorities, and even potentially undermine the “safety and soundness” of Canada’s financial system, according to business lawyers.
Nearly eight years after a high-flying hedge fund with ostensibly $1-billion in assets collapsed under the weight of a flurry of investor redemptions, the fallout from the Norshield Financial Group financial debacle continues unabated.
Quebec Superior Court recently certified a $159-million class action against the Royal Bank of Canada, less than four months after yet another financial planner was fined $225,000 by the Court of Quebec after being found guilty of 60 of the 62 charges laid against him by the provincial securities regulator in connection with the illegal distribution of products related to Norshield. So far, ten representatives have been found guilty, incurring fines totalling $628,500. Only one case remains outstanding.
Norshield, an umbrella name for a complicated array of interrelated companies offering investments to retail, institutional and high-net worth private investors, filed for receivership in June 2005 at the request of the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC).
A privacy class action suit launched by a software engineer against Apple Inc. and Apple Canada Inc. was granted authorization by Quebec Superior Court.
Quebec’s business and legal community and consumer protection advocates are concerned over the impact of three related class action rulings by the Quebec Court of Appeal, with some fearing that motions seeking class action authorization will now be more easily granted while others are worried that consumers will pay the price following the court’s interpretation of what is included in the cost of credit.
After a handful of decisions seemingly leaned towards a permissive approach in securities class actions, the pendulum seems to have swung back.
