Allan David Coleman

The Plaintiffs sought partial indemnity costs and disbursements totaling $1,391,715.45 following a successful, but partially limited, certification motion in a class action against several financial institutions.

The Defendants argued for a significant reduction, citing their substantial success in narrowing the class definition and potential double recovery from prior settlements.

The court awarded the Plaintiffs $700,000 in legal fees and HST, payable forthwith, and ordered disbursements of $468,705.06 payable in the cause.

The reduction in fees reflected the Defendants' success in streamlining the class action and reducing their potential liability, which the court deemed important for the integrity of the class actions regime and to discourage overambitious claims, without constituting a distributive costs award.

The appellant objected to their civil appeal proceeding in writing, arguing the Court of Appeal lacked jurisdiction to order a written hearing over a party's objection, contrary to the *Courts of Justice Act* and *Rules of Civil Procedure*.

The court, through a Case Management Judge, dismissed the objection, affirming its broad implicit jurisdiction to manage its own process and ensure the just and efficient administration of justice, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The court held that neither the Act nor the Rules mandate an absolute right to an oral hearing and found the appeal suitable for a written disposition.

The plaintiffs in two proposed class actions sought court approval under s. 29 of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992, to dismiss their actions against PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) with prejudice and without costs, and to discontinue the actions against the non-settling defendants without prejudice and without costs.

This motion was brought to implement a $30 million settlement reached with PwC in a parallel, national class action proceeding in Québec, which had already been approved by the Québec Superior Court.

The court granted the requested orders, finding that the interests of the putative class members in Ontario would not be prejudiced, as they could participate in the Québec settlement and broad notice had been provided regarding the impact on their rights.

This class action involved two motions: approval of three settlements totaling $39.2 million in an FX market price-fixing conspiracy case, and approval of Class Counsel's fees and disbursements.

The court approved the settlements, finding them fair and reasonable given the litigation risks and the stage of the proceedings.

However, the court partially denied Class Counsel's request for $9.8 million in fees, approving only an additional $2 million, citing that the achieved recovery (5 cents on the dollar against a potential $1 billion loss) was respectable but not "very good," and that the claimed litigation risks were somewhat exaggerated given prior regulatory findings and U.S. settlements.

The court emphasized the need for diligence in approving contingency fees in settlements to ensure they are provident for class members, not just counsel.

Trustees of a pension fund sought certification of a securities class action and leave to proceed with statutory secondary‑market misrepresentation claims under Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act.

The proposed class alleged that a mining company and its officers misrepresented the value and prospects of two West African mines and failed to timely record a goodwill impairment.

The court analyzed the leave test requiring a “reasonable possibility of success at trial” and concluded that the plaintiffs’ theory relied on flawed expert analysis and speculative assumptions regarding drilling results and impairment triggers.

The alleged low‑grade ore misrepresentation was found to be semantically inaccurate, and an alleged schedule misrepresentation had not been pleaded.

Leave to proceed under the Securities Act was therefore refused, and certification was denied, though the individual common law negligence claim could continue.