At the conclusion of a liability trial before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in this class action commenced 17 years ago[1], two Canadian mutual fund managers were found negligent for having failed to prevent certain hedge funds from engaging in “time zone arbitrage”, a type of trading strategy employed by short term traders characterized … Continue reading
US Supreme Court clarifies standards for rebutting price impact in securities class actions | United States | Global law firm | Norton Rose Fulbright… Continue reading
In Kaynes v BP p.l.c, 2021 ONCA 36, the Ontario Court of Appeal clarified when a claim for fraudulent misrepresentation is discoverable under the Limitations Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 24, Sched. B (Limitations Act), and in what circumstances it is appropriate for a limitation issue to be decided on a Rule. 21.01(1)(a) motion. Facts: … Continue reading
In British Columbia (Securities Commission) v. BridgeMark Financial Corp, 2020 BCCA 301, the British Columbia Court of Appeal upheld a decision of the British Columbia Securities Commission (Commission) to release documents obtained during an investigation and filed as evidence at a hearing to consider whether to extend a temporary cease trade order. A firm of … Continue reading
In Miller v. FSD Pharma Inc. (Miller), a decision released June 23, 2020, Morgan J. of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice granted leave to proceed with a putative secondary market securities class action under s. 138.3 of Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act (OSA) against FSD Pharma Inc. (FSD), a new entrant into … Continue reading
Makris v Endo International PLC On October 1, 2020 the Ontario Superior Court approved a securities class action settlement agreement in the amount of $700,000 and a plan of allocation providing for the distribution of the settlement amount, net of legal fees, disbursements and taxes, to two investor protection legal clinics. The Cy-près Distribution of … Continue reading
The recent decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal in Wright v. Horizons ETFS Management (Canada) Inc. (2020 ONCA 337) is significant for two reasons. First, it recognizes the existence of a duty of care owed by a fund manager to purchasers of units of the fund in relation to the allegedly negligent design of … Continue reading
The price at which securities of many Canadian issuers are trading has been significantly affected by the global coronavirus pandemic. This will almost certainly impact their risk of litigation arising from the accuracy their public disclosures. For companies that are dual listed in the United States, the risks are likely enhanced. These risks appear to … Continue reading
Climate change has been a focus in the United States for quite some time now, and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published interpretive guidance on climate change disclosures a decade ago. However, the times are changing—and the potential liability for directors and officers has never been higher. Climate change disclosures have been debated … Continue reading
The Ontario government’s recent announcement of proposed changes to Ontario’s class proceedings legislation bodes well for defendants and their insurers. If the amendments become law, they would provide greater latitude to defendants seeking to narrow or dismiss claims prior to certification, make certification a somewhat steeper hill for class counsel to climb, and provide mechanisms … Continue reading
In a recent class action settlement approval hearing, Justice Belobaba of the Ontario Superior Court affirmed the value of early “ice breaker” settlements in complex class actions involving multiple defendants. In such a settlement, one defendant settles ahead of the rest for what may be viewed as a “token” amount, along with a pledge to … Continue reading
On March 5, 2019, the United States Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a class action claim alleging securities fraud based on purportedly misleading statements made by an Issuer regarding its regulatory compliance efforts. The Second Circuit concluded that the Issuer’s statements were too generic to cause a reasonable investor … Continue reading
In February 2019, the Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) declined to stay the hearing of pending ASC enforcement proceedings on the basis of the existence of parallel, pending class action proceedings. Background In June 2018, Staff of the ASC issued a notice of hearing against Alberta divisions of the Lutheran Church-Canada and several of their former … Continue reading
The Court of Appeal for Ontario recently set aside a decision approving the legal fees of class counsel on the condition that counsel would donate 40% of the approved fees to charity. The appeal provides useful guidance for practitioners on fee approval motions in class actions. The Settlement Agreement Welsh v. Ontario, 2019 ONCA 41 … Continue reading
The Ontario Superior Court (ONSC) issued two back-to-back decisions on acceptable litigation financing agreements, both involving the same third party funder. While the ONSC continues to approve classic litigation financing arrangements, uncertainty remains as to whether third party financiers may profitably fund counsel fees in the context of class actions. Classic funding schemes continue to … Continue reading
Justice Perell’s decision in Fantl v. ivari, teaches class action defendants an important lesson in being careful what they wish for. In a rare decision, he ordered that a defendant contribute the majority of the costs of providing potential class members with notice of certification. Background When a class action is certified by a court, … Continue reading
In the recent decision of Paniccia v MDC Partners Inc., Perell J. refused to grant leave to proceed with a putative secondary market securities class action under Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act (OSA) against MDC Partners Inc and certain of its officers on the basis that the alleged misrepresentations were not material. The … Continue reading
Companies confronting serial class actions won much needed relief from the US Supreme Court yesterday, in a decision that held that a class action tolls statutes of limitations only for putative class members’ individual claims, and not for later-filed class actions. A second class action must be filed within the limitations period, or it is … Continue reading
On May 31, 2018, the Supreme Court of Canada denied SouthGobi Resources Ltd.’s application for leave to appeal the decision of the Ontario Court of Appeal, which I provided an update on October 7, 2018. The Court of Appeal decision provides guidance concerning the availability of the defence of reasonable investigation to a claim under Part … Continue reading
On March 9, 2018, the Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) released its Consultation Paper entitled “Class Actions: Objectives, Experiences and Reforms”. The Consultation Paper is the next phase of the LCO’s Class Actions Project which is set to conduct a general review of the class action landscape in Ontario, with a view to providing a … Continue reading
(The author was a member of the CBA National Class Actions Task Force 2016-2017) At the CBA Annual Meeting on February 15, 2018, a resolution to approve, as best practices, a revised Canadian Judicial Protocol for the Management of Multi-Jurisdictional Class Actions was approved. The resolution also urges Canadian courts that administer class actions to … Continue reading
In the U.S. there has been an notable uptick in class action lawsuits launched against companies in the cryptocurrency market in late 2017. As public attention turned to the roller-coaster ride of cryptocurrency markets over the past year, it is not surprising that ambitious class counsel have jumped on the ride by issuing their first … Continue reading
Plaintiffs in class action claims for misrepresentation in the secondary market recently scored a victory when the Ontario Superior Court of Justice determined[1] that not only does it have jurisdiction over these claims brought by Canadians who purchased shares of a company registered in Canada on a foreign stock exchange, but that Canadian securities and … Continue reading
In a previous post, You Get it Right and it’s Still a Misrepresentation: the Paradox in Pretium, we reported on the decision of Justice Belobaba in Wong v Pretium Resources Inc. granting leave to the plaintiff to commence an action for secondary market misrepresentation under Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act. On December 1, … Continue reading