On a motion under the Class Proceedings Act, 1992, the court approved the settlement of a class action alleging that a mutual fund manager and trustee improperly paid trailing commissions to discount brokers, thereby diminishing fund assets.
The court held the $8.5 million non-reversionary settlement was fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class, emphasizing the arms’-length negotiations, substantial litigation risks, limitation defences, expert-supported valuation, and efficient distribution method combining direct deposits for current unitholders with a simplified claims process for former unitholders.
The court also approved class counsel fees, taxes, disbursements, litigation funding payments, and a modest honorarium for the representative plaintiff.
The certification question itself was not decided on this motion.
