Nathalie Amelia Gondek

This was a consent motion for certification for settlement purposes in a class action.

The plaintiff, Adrian Chandra, sued the Ontario provincial government for negligence and breaches of sections 7 and 12 of the Charter regarding the operation and management of provincial correctional institutions from September 18, 2018, to August 18, 2021, specifically concerning administrative segregation (solitary confinement).

This action effectively continued the class period from a previous case, Francis v. Ontario.

A settlement agreement was reached, adding an additional $13 million in aggregate damages for class members and establishing a protocol for distribution and individual issue resolution.

The court found that all criteria for certification under s. 5(1) of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992, were satisfied and granted the motion.

This is Part 2 of a joint decision by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice and the Superior Court of Québec concerning the Brazeau, Reddock, and Gallone class actions.

The courts finalized and approved the Distribution and Individual Issues Protocol, which governs the distribution of the aggregate damages award and the procedures for determining individual issues.

The decision addresses submissions from the parties on a provisional draft protocol and resolves a late-arriving dispute between Class Counsel and the Law Foundation of Ontario regarding funding for the individual issues phase by deleting contentious provisions.

The court redetermined Charter damages in a class action concerning administrative segregation in federal penitentiaries, following an appeal that set aside the initial damages award.

The Court of Appeal affirmed liability but remitted the damages issue for redetermination on proper principles.

The court awarded $20 million for vindication, deterrence, compensation, and pre-judgment interest, to be distributed directly to class members.

For the purposes of individual issues trials, the per capita award is to be deemed compensatory damages.

This decision rejected Canada's submission for a $2.4 million award and the plaintiffs' alternative submission for $20 million solely for vindication and deterrence.

This appeal concerned two class actions (Brazeau and Reddock) brought by federal inmates challenging the legality of administrative segregation practices.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario upheld the motion judge's finding of liability against Canada for breaches of ss. 7 and 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, concluding that the prolonged administrative segregation practices constituted cruel and unusual punishment and lacked independent review.

The court found that Canada's failure to alter its policies despite long-standing criticism met the "clear disregard for Charter rights" threshold for awarding damages.

However, the court set aside the motion judge's order in Brazeau to use aggregate damages for structural changes to penal institutions, deeming it an unjustifiable assumption of judicial control and a misinterpretation of the Class Proceedings Act.

The court also overturned the finding of systemic negligence in Reddock, concluding that Charter damages were the more appropriate remedy.

The appeals were allowed in part, with the Brazeau damages remitted for re-determination and the Reddock negligence finding reversed.