Nearly a year after a handful of decisions seemingly leaned towards a permissive approach in securities class actions for misrepresentations in public disclosure, the pendulum seems to have swung back after a couple of recent court decisions tilted in favour of issuers.
In a 163-page ruling Justice George Strathy of the Ontario Superior Court this week dismissed a secondary market securities class action against CIBC because the plaintiffs had failed to obtain the required leave to proceed with the action within the three-year period mandated by the Ontario Securities Act (OSA). Justice Strathy pointed out that he would have certified the action and allowed it to proceed to trial if he had not found the limitation period had expired.