Michael Robb

The plaintiff brought an unopposed motion to certify the proceeding as a class action under the Class Proceedings Act, 1992.

The action alleges that the defendant improperly paid trailing commissions to discount brokers out of mutual fund assets.

The court found that all certification criteria were met, relying on previous decisions in similar cases, and granted the certification order.

The plaintiff sought leave to commence a secondary market misrepresentation claim under the Securities Act and certification of a class proceeding against Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. and its officers.

The plaintiff alleged the defendants failed to disclose a material tax liability arising from a CRA audit regarding transfer pricing.

The court dismissed the motion for leave, finding no reasonable possibility of success at trial because the plaintiff's expert evidence was inadmissible or unreliable, and the defendants' disclosures accurately reflected management's reasonable assessment of the tax risk.

The court also declined to certify the common law and prospectus misrepresentation claims, finding a class proceeding was not the preferable procedure and the claims did not disclose a reasonable cause of action.

The plaintiff sought leave to proceed with a statutory secondary market misrepresentation claim under Part XXIII.1 of the Securities Act and to certify the proceeding as a class action.

The claim alleged that the defendants failed to disclose material risks regarding the potential suspension of a mining license in Guatemala due to a lack of indigenous consultation.

The court found that the plaintiff established a reasonable possibility of success at trial based on credible expert evidence regarding Guatemalan law and economic materiality.

The court granted leave and certified the global class action, rejecting the defendants' objections regarding the representative plaintiff and the inclusion of foreign shareholders.

The Applicants, licensed cannabis producers, sought court approval and sanction of their second amended and restated plan of compromise and arrangement under the CCAA.

The Plan aimed to implement a settlement framework for multiple securities class actions arising from the Applicants' illegal cannabis growing operations.

While the court found the Allocation and Distribution Scheme reasonable and rejected KPMG's complaint about being excluded from voting, it refused to sanction the Plan.

The court held that the Plan's provisions regarding the assignment of claims against KPMG and the Judgment Reduction Provision in the Bar Order were not fair and reasonable to the non-settling defendants, as they failed to limit the non-settling defendants' liability to several liability.

Class counsel brought a motion for approval of their legal fees and disbursements following the settlement of a securities class proceeding for $29.5 million.

Counsel sought $5.9 million in fees based on a contingency agreement.

The court reviewed the factors for approving class counsel fees, noting the early settlement and the high hourly rates docketed.

The court reduced the requested fee, approving $2.775 million plus HST as fair and reasonable compensation for the risk assumed and results achieved, along with full recovery of disbursements.

The plaintiff moved for approval of a $29.5 million settlement in a securities class action against the defendants for alleged misrepresentations in continuous disclosure documents regarding mortgage origination practices.

The settlement also resolved a companion Ontario Securities Commission proceeding.

The court found the settlement fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class, noting the significant litigation risks, the complex damages calculations, and the immediate business implications for the corporate defendant.

The court also approved the Distribution Protocol, Notice Plan, and Claim Form, with minor modifications to extend the deficiency rectification period.

Following an omnibus motion in a secondary market securities class action, the defendants sought costs payable forthwith.

The plaintiffs and one co-defendant argued for costs in the cause.

The court ordered costs in the cause, noting that the omnibus motion involved novel legal issues and was part of the fabric of the whole litigation, making it fairest that the ultimate victor in the action receive the costs.

The Court addressed three securities class action appeals on whether limitation periods for statutory secondary-market misrepresentation claims are suspended before leave is granted, and on related nunc pro tunc, special circumstances, leave-threshold, and certification issues.

The CIBC and IMAX appeals were dismissed, while the Celestica appeal was allowed.

The plaintiff sought leave under s. 138.8 of the Securities Act to pursue a secondary market misrepresentation class action arising from a mining company’s public restatement of prior financial statements related to “bill and hold” revenue recognition.

The court held that the explicit restatement acknowledging prior errors and internal control weaknesses created a reasonable possibility that the claim against the issuer could succeed at trial.

However, the individual officers and directors demonstrated a reasonable investigation defence through detailed evidence of their reliance on professional auditors and careful review of revenue recognition practices.

As a result, the statutory leave requirement was satisfied only as against the issuer company.

Leave was refused against the individual defendants.

The Crown applied to remove defence counsel due to a conflict of interest after the same lawyer had represented both an accused and a key Crown witness who later provided incriminating statements.

The accused sought a stay of proceedings or exclusion of the witness’s evidence under ss. 7 and 11(d) of the Charter, arguing police inducements and delayed disclosure compromised their fair trial rights.

The court found that while police comments undermining the witness’s confidence in her lawyer were inappropriate, the accused could not rely on alleged Charter breaches affecting the witness, and no actual prejudice to their ability to make full answer and defence was established.

The court declined to grant a stay or exclude the witness’s evidence but held the conflict required removal of counsel.

The accused would need to obtain new counsel and a new trial date.

A carriage motion was brought to determine which of two competing groups of class action firms should conduct a proposed securities class proceeding against a mining company and its executives arising from alleged misrepresentations about a Chilean mining project.

One action advanced a single claim based on environmental misrepresentations, while the competing action advanced multiple claims including environmental, capital expenditure, accounting misrepresentation, conspiracy, and limitation‑related doctrines.

The court held that on a carriage motion the judge should not determine which claim is most likely to succeed but should assess whether claims are viable and free of obvious defects.

The competing action advancing multiple viable claims and demonstrating a substantially higher level of preparation was found to better serve the interests of the class.

Carriage was therefore granted to the more comprehensive and better prepared action.

The accused was convicted of multiple counts of drug trafficking (heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine) and simple possession after concealing the drugs in his anal cavity.

The accused had a significant prior criminal record for drug trafficking and showed no remorse or effort toward rehabilitation.

The court emphasized denunciation and deterrence, sentencing the accused to a global term of 10 years' incarceration, reduced to 7 years, 3 months, and 24 days after credit for pre-sentence custody.

The court also ordered a lifetime weapons prohibition, forfeiture of seized property, and a DNA sample.

The accused was charged with importing cocaine and possession for the purpose of trafficking after a brick of cocaine wrapped in his T-shirt was found in the fuse box of a commercial truck he was a passenger in.

The truck was driven by a co-accused who testified against him.

Applying the W. (D.) test and a Vetrovec caution, the court rejected the accused's testimony as incredible and found him guilty on both counts based on circumstantial evidence, video surveillance, and the co-accused's testimony.

The accused, charged with multiple offences under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act for possession of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and hydromorphone for the purpose of trafficking, brought a Charter application seeking exclusion of drug evidence discovered while he was detained in a police “dry cell.” Police had obtained a general warrant under s. 487.01 of the Criminal Code authorizing detention until the accused passed drugs concealed in his anal cavity.

The accused argued that the warrant and the delay in bringing him before a justice violated ss. 7, 8, and 9 of the Charter and s. 503 of the Criminal Code.

The court held the warrant was valid and that the “dry cell” detention constituted the least intrusive method available to recover the drugs given the accused’s concealment method.

Even if Charter breaches occurred, the court concluded the evidence would not be excluded under s. 24(2) given the seriousness of the offences and police good faith.

In a securities class action concerning alleged misrepresentations in the prospectus and offering materials for a company’s 2010 initial public offering, the representative plaintiff moved for court approval of a settlement under the Class Proceedings Act, 1992.

The settlement provided for a global payment of USD $15,250,000 to resolve claims by Canadian and U.S. investors, with a coordinated cross‑border approval process and a shared claims administration.

The court applied the established criteria for approval of class action settlements, including the likelihood of success, litigation risks, counsel’s recommendations, the reasonableness of the terms, and the absence of objections.

Finding the settlement fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class, the court approved both the settlement and the plan of allocation, as well as class counsel’s requested contingency fees and litigation expenses.

The accused was stopped for a traffic violation.

The investigating officer, noting the accused's nervous demeanour, evasive answers, and the presence of a baseball bat and knife in the vehicle, detained the accused for officer safety.

During a pat-down search, the officer discovered cocaine in the accused's pocket.

The accused brought an application to exclude the evidence under s. 24(2) of the Charter, alleging violations of his rights under ss. 7, 8, 9, and 10(b).

The court dismissed the application, finding that the investigative detention and pat-down search were justified based on the totality of the circumstances and officer safety concerns.

The accused pleaded guilty to multiple offences including sexual interference with a minor, making and possessing child pornography, smuggling obscene materials, and breaching recognizance conditions.

The court emphasized denunciation and deterrence, noting the severe emotional impact on the victim and the accused's flagrant breaches of bail conditions by re-offending.

The accused was sentenced to a global term of 6 years in custody, reduced to 4.5 years net after applying a 1.5:1 enhanced credit for pre-sentence custody due to physical assaults suffered in jail.

The plaintiffs sought consent certification of a proposed securities class action alleging that the defendant mining company and certain officers misrepresented the scope and impact of water inflow problems at a Quebec gold mine, causing losses to purchasers of the company’s shares.

The court considered the certification requirements under s. 5(1) of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992 and, given the parties’ consent and the evidentiary record, found that the statutory criteria were satisfied.

The plaintiffs also sought leave under Part XXIII.1 of the Securities Act to pursue statutory secondary market misrepresentation claims.

The court held that the action was brought in good faith and that there was a reasonable possibility of success at trial.

Certification and leave were granted.

The accused brought an application under s. 24(2) of the Charter seeking exclusion of evidence obtained during the execution of a telewarrant at his residence on drug trafficking charges.

The defence argued the telewarrant lacked sufficient grounds because it relied heavily on information from a confidential informant and contained an error regarding the accused’s vehicle.

The court applied the Debot framework assessing the compelling nature of the tip, the credibility of the source, and police corroboration.

Despite a mistake in the information to obtain, the court found the informant’s observations, partial corroboration by police records and surveillance, and prior reliability of the source sufficient to justify the warrant.

The court concluded the totality of the circumstances supported issuance of the telewarrant and refused to exclude the evidence.

The plaintiff brought a motion to certify a proposed class action for damages pursuant to s. 130 of the Securities Act.

The defendants consented to certification, except for the plaintiff's proposed class definition which included purchasers in the secondary market.

The court held that s. 130(1) of the Act does not provide a statutory cause of action to purchasers in the secondary market, and revised the class definition accordingly before granting certification.