The plaintiffs, former boarding students of Grenville Christian College, brought a class action against the school and the estates of its former headmasters for systemic negligence and breach of fiduciary duty.
The court found that the school operated as a 'total institution' and employed abusive, arbitrary, and humiliating disciplinary practices, including excessive corporal punishment and public shaming, which fell below the standard of care for educational institutions in Ontario.
The court concluded that the defendants breached their duty of care and fiduciary obligations to the students, and that their conduct merited an award of punitive damages.
