Alysha Xiang Li

The plaintiff sought certification of a class proceeding against the defendant bank, alleging the improper charging of duplicative non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees on re-presented pre-authorized debit transactions.

The defendant consented to the certification.

The court, applying the five criteria under section 5(1) of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992, found that the pleadings disclosed a cause of action, there was an identifiable class, common issues were raised, a class proceeding was the preferable procedure, and the representative plaintiff was adequate.

Consequently, the action was certified as a class proceeding.

EF Institute for Cultural Exchange Limited (EF) appealed a summary judgment dismissing its claims against its former president, David Conklin, and WorldStrides Canada, Inc. (WorldStrides).

EF alleged breaches of a Confidential Information clause and a Restrictive Covenant by Conklin, and knowing assistance/inducing breach by WorldStrides, after Conklin joined WorldStrides following his termination from EF.

The Court of Appeal upheld the motion judge's decision, finding no actionable breach of confidentiality or non-compete obligations, and that the claims had dwindled to a "corporate grudge match" not warranting further litigation.

The appeal was dismissed with costs.

This decision concerns the determination of costs following the dismissal of the plaintiff's action on a motion for summary judgment.

The defendants, as the successful party, sought costs of $180,753.95, while the plaintiff had initially outlined costs of $55,053.66 if successful.

The court applied the principle that costs should be fair and reasonable for the unsuccessful party to pay, rather than the actual costs incurred by the successful party.

Despite the defendants' complete success and a Rule 49 offer, the court found their claimed costs to be excessive, partly due to the number of lawyers involved and potential overpreparation.

The court awarded the defendants $65,000.00, inclusive of fees, HST, and disbursements.