Chantelle Teresa Marie Cseh

The court approved a $500 million settlement in a national class action concerning a price-fixing conspiracy in the packaged bread market, resolving claims against Loblaw Companies Limited and related entities.

The settlement includes a substantial damages payment, a distribution protocol for class members, and a cooperation agreement by Loblaw to assist in ongoing litigation against non-settling defendants.

The court also approved class counsel fees and the payout to a third-party funder, finding the settlement fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class.

The appellant sought to certify a class proceeding alleging a price-fixing conspiracy in the Canadian canned tuna market.

The motion judge dismissed the certification motion, finding a failure to plead material facts for a reasonable cause of action and an insufficient evidentiary basis for common issues.

The Court of Appeal upheld the dismissal, agreeing that the claim lacked material facts to support a Canadian conspiracy and that there was no sufficient factual basis for the proposed common issues, particularly given the distinct Canadian and U.S. tuna markets.

The court also confirmed its jurisdiction to hear the appeal, as the lower court's order effectively ended the proceeding.

The appellants, small and mid-size businesses, appealed a class action decision regarding business interruption insurance claims stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

They sought coverage for revenue losses, arguing that the presence of SARS-CoV-2 or civil authority orders constituted "physical loss or damage" to their property under their insurance policies.

The Court of Appeal upheld the trial judge's finding that neither the virus's presence nor the civil authority orders met the "physical loss or damage" criteria for business interruption coverage.

The appeal was dismissed, and costs were awarded to the respondents.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario heard motions to quash an appeal of a class certification order in a price-fixing conspiracy case involving packaged bread.

The plaintiffs (appellants) argued the certification order, which defined the class, effectively dismissed claims of excluded persons and was thus a final order appealable under the Courts of Justice Act.

The defendants (moving parties) contended it was a certification order governed by the Class Proceedings Act (CPA) and that, under the CPA's transitional provisions, the appeal should lie to the Divisional Court with leave.

The court found the certification order was a procedural order, not a final one, as it did not decide the ultimate merits of any claim.

Consequently, the appeal provisions of the CPA applied.

Furthermore, the court determined that the pre-2020 amendments to the CPA governed the appeal because the original proceeding was commenced before the amendments came into force.

The appeal to the Court of Appeal was therefore quashed.

The plaintiffs, trustees of a pension fund, commenced a class action in Ontario and a similar one in Federal Court.

Settlements were reached with some defendants in the Federal Court action.

The plaintiffs sought court approval to discontinue the Ontario action, with prejudice and without costs, in favour of the Federal Court proceedings.

The court granted the motion, finding no prejudice to putative class members as their claims would continue in the Federal Court, and that discontinuing the Ontario action would avoid a multiplicity of proceedings.

The Monitor of a CCAA-protected company appealed a motion judge's decision dismissing its motion to disallow a creditor's claim secured by a guarantee.

The creditor, Speedy Electrical Contractors Ltd., had provided a personal loan and performed electrical work for Urbancorp entities.

When Speedy threatened legal proceedings and held a construction lien, the parties entered into a debt extension agreement whereby Speedy agreed to discharge its lien and extend the loan in exchange for a secured guarantee from King Residential Inc. (a related Urbancorp entity) over condominium units.

The Monitor argued the guarantee was a transfer at undervalue under section 96 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and a fraudulent conveyance under the Fraudulent Conveyances Act.

The motion judge found Speedy and KRI were dealing at arm's length and that fraudulent intent was not established.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, upholding the motion judge's findings.

The moving parties sought a stay of a Court of Appeal order pending their application for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.

The underlying dispute concerned whether estate files related to the estates of Bernard Sherman and Honey Sherman should remain sealed.

The application judge had ordered the files sealed for two years to protect privacy and safety interests.

The Court of Appeal reversed this order, finding that privacy interests were not properly considered at the first stage of the Sierra Club test and that any risk of harm was speculative.

The motion judge granted the stay, finding that the moving parties had met the test under section 65.1(2) of the Supreme Court Act and that all three factors for a stay were satisfied: a serious question to be determined, irreparable harm if the stay were refused, and a balance of convenience favouring the stay.

The appellant appealed an order sealing court files relating to the estates of Bernard and Honey Sherman, who were murdered in December 2017.

The motion judge had granted sealing orders ex parte, citing the need to protect the privacy and dignity of the victims and their loved ones, as well as concerns about the personal safety of estate beneficiaries and administrators.

The Court of Appeal set aside the sealing orders, finding that the respondents failed to meet the necessity threshold required for sealing orders.

The court held that personal privacy concerns alone cannot justify sealing, and that the evidence of risk to beneficiaries and administrators was speculative rather than based on concrete facts.