Rebecca Jones

The applicant donor pledged $1 million to the respondent charity to develop a workplace mental health program, payable in three installments.

After paying the first installment, the applicant became dissatisfied with the program's direction, withheld the second installment, and demanded a refund.

The applicant then applied under section 6 of the Charities Accounting Act for an order directing the Public Guardian and Trustee to investigate the charity's use of the funds.

The Superior Court of Justice dismissed the application, finding that the applicant's concerns regarding the program's vision and timeline constituted a private interest rather than a public interest.

The court noted there was no evidence of financial mismanagement to justify the costly and disruptive investigation.

The applicants requested that the judge recuse himself from the present application, arguing that an endorsement he made in a motion four years ago involving the individual applicant demonstrated an apprehension of bias.

The judge reviewed the prior endorsement and the test for apprehension of bias, noting that the reasonable person is vested with knowledge of the judicial process.

The judge concluded that a reasonably informed reader would not find an adverse view had been formed, as the prior endorsement explicitly stated no fault was found with either side.

The recusal request was dismissed.

This is a motion to vary the Court of Appeal's decision in a solicitor's negligence case.

The moving party sought to clarify the trial judge's discretion regarding the final quantification of damages and the process for calculating the damages award, subject to a ceiling of $36.9 million.

The respondent opposed the motion.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the motion, finding that the moving party could not bring itself within the applicable rules permitting reconsideration of appellate decisions, and that it was not in the interests of justice to invoke the court's narrow jurisdiction to reconsider.

This appeal concerns a class action by General Motors of Canada Limited (GMCL) dealers against the law firm Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP for breach of fiduciary and contractual duties.

During the 2009 financial crisis, Cassels represented three potentially conflicting clients: the Saturn Dealers, Industry Canada (regarding GMCL bailout financing), and GMCL dealers generally regarding a potential restructuring or insolvency.

The trial judge found that Cassels breached its duties by failing to disclose the conflict of interest with Industry Canada to the dealers and by failing to provide proper advice regarding Wind-Down Agreements (WDAs) offered by GMCL.

The dealers lost the opportunity to negotiate collectively for better compensation.

The Court of Appeal upheld the liability findings but reduced the damages award from $45 million to approximately $41 million (subject to further calculation regarding class composition).

The applicant, an Indigenous person, sought an urgent interim and interlocutory injunction to restrain the broadcast and display of the Cleveland Indians' team name and 'Chief Wahoo' logo during the American League Championship Series in Toronto, pending human rights complaints.

The court found there was a serious issue to be tried regarding whether the name and logo constituted discrimination in the provision of a service.

However, the court dismissed the application because the applicant failed to establish irreparable harm, noting the delay in bringing the application, and found the balance of convenience favoured the respondents due to the material prejudice of last-minute broadcast and uniform changes.

The plaintiffs brought an omnibus motion for certification, settlement approval, class counsel fees, and representative plaintiff honoraria in a class action against 407 ETR.

The action alleged that 407 ETR unlawfully used the plate denial remedy against insolvent vehicle owners, contrary to the stay of proceedings under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act.

The court certified the action for settlement purposes and approved a settlement fund of $7,965,800, finding it fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class.

The court also approved class counsel's 30% contingency fee and a $10,000 honorarium for each of the three representative plaintiffs.

The appellant, 407 ETR, appealed a motion judge's decision regarding the application of the Limitations Act, 2002 to unpaid toll debts.

The Court of Appeal held that a civil action to collect unpaid tolls is not an 'appropriate means' under s. 5(1)(a)(iv) of the Limitations Act until the statutory licence plate denial process has run its course and the debtor's vehicle permit expires.

The Court also held that a 15-year limitation period in a transponder lease agreement is enforceable under s. 22(3) of the Limitations Act, even though it is a consumer agreement, because s. 22(3) permits parties to extend the limitation period.

The appeal was allowed.

The parties appeared on a motion to settle the terms of a judgment following a class action trial.

The court resolved three disputes between the plaintiff and the defendant law firm regarding the wording of the judgment.

The court held that the judgment should include a mechanism allowing for a potential reduction of the $45 million aggregate damages award, as the court had mistakenly assumed all 181 class members had retained the law firm.

The court also clarified that class members only needed to return a participation form or funding to create a retainer, and that this had to be done prior to the waiver of the Acceptance Threshold Condition.

Following a 41-day trial where the plaintiff succeeded against one defendant (Cassels) but failed against another (GMCL), the court determined the costs awards.

The plaintiff was awarded partial indemnity costs against Cassels, apportioned at 40% of fees and 50% of disbursements to reflect the divided success of the action.

GMCL sought substantial indemnity costs against the plaintiff, arguing the plaintiff made unfounded allegations of misconduct.

The court rejected this, finding the allegations were not reprehensible, and awarded GMCL partial indemnity costs, subject to a 10% reduction for duplication between its two law firms.

The plaintiff was also awarded costs for successfully defending GMCL's counterclaim.

The court issued supplementary reasons to clarify when the two-year limitation period begins to run for claims arising from unpaid Highway 407 toll invoices.

The dispute concerned whether the limitation period commenced when the debtor’s vehicle permit expired during licence plate denial or when the debtor was first placed into licence plate denial under the Highway 407 Act.

The court held that the limitation period begins when the Registrar places the debtor’s licence plate into licence plate denial.

This interpretation avoids allowing the toll operator to control when the limitation period begins and is consistent with the statutory collection scheme and the principles underlying limitation periods.

The court therefore confirmed that the limitation period in the case began on the date the licence plate was placed into denial.

In this certified franchise class action arising from the 2009 automotive restructuring, the representative plaintiff alleged that the franchisor breached statutory duties of fair dealing, disclosure, and association when it issued wind-down agreements to affected dealers on short notice, and also alleged that class counsel acted in conflict and failed to protect the dealers' interests.

The court held that the franchisor did not breach its obligations under the Arthur Wishart Act or analogous provincial legislation, found the wind-down release enforceable as a settlement of existing and fully known claims, and dismissed the claim against the franchisor as well as the franchisor's counterclaim.

The court further held that the law firm retained for the dealer group had in fact entered into a solicitor-client relationship with the contributing dealers, that its retainer extended to pre-filing restructuring issues, and that it breached fiduciary, contractual, and tort duties by acting despite an undisclosed conflict with Industry Canada, failing to address the steering committee's internal conflict, and maintaining an unreasonable wait-and-see approach.

Applying a loss-of-chance analysis, the court found that the class lost a real and significant opportunity to negotiate collectively for higher wind-down payments and awarded aggregate damages of $45 million against the law firm.

In a national class action by terminated GM dealers against GMCL and their counsel, Cassels Brock & Blackwell (CBB), CBB brought third party claims against out-of-province local lawyers who provided independent legal advice to the dealers.

The out-of-province third parties brought motions to stay or dismiss the claims for lack of jurisdiction or forum non conveniens.

The court dismissed the motions, finding that the Ontario court had jurisdiction under the fourth Van Breda presumptive connecting factor because the Wind-Down Agreements, which required the independent legal advice, were made in Ontario and were sufficiently connected to the dispute.

The court also found Ontario to be the most appropriate forum.

The client appealed a motion judge's decision that set aside an assessment officer's award regarding her solicitors' bill of costs.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding that the assessment officer erred by ignoring the retainer agreement, improperly discounting docketed time, and mischaracterizing the complexity of the matrimonial litigation.

The court also rejected the client's allegation of reasonable apprehension of bias against the motion judge.

In a certified class action arising from the termination of automobile dealerships following the 2009 automotive industry restructuring, the plaintiff brought a Rule 30 motion seeking production of documents withheld on the basis of solicitor‑client privilege by a non‑party dealers’ association.

The court reviewed 211 disputed documents in camera to determine whether they constituted privileged legal advice or merely legal information.

Applying the distinction between general legal information and particularized legal advice concerning rights, duties, or liability, the court found that many communications concerned general information about potential bankruptcy proceedings under the CCAA rather than legal advice.

Of the documents reviewed, 60 were held to be privileged while the remainder were ordered produced.

The decision clarifies the analytical distinction between legal advice and legal information for purposes of solicitor‑client privilege in document production disputes.

Following the dismissal of two Rule 30 motions brought by the defendants seeking production of allegedly privileged documents in a certified class proceeding, the court determined the appropriate costs award.

Although the court agreed that solicitor-client privilege had been expressly waived during cross-examinations, the motions were dismissed because the legal advice received by an individual class member was irrelevant to the certified common issues.

On the costs issue, the court rejected the defendants’ submission that success was divided and held that the responding party was substantially successful.

Applying the factors in Rule 57.01(1) and the guidance from the Court of Appeal in Boucher, the court fixed a fair and reasonable costs award below the amount claimed.

Costs of $20,000 all-inclusive were awarded to the responding party, divided equally between the two defendants.

The plaintiffs, twin brothers born prematurely who developed cerebral palsy, sued their mother's obstetrician for negligence.

The trial judge found the obstetrician breached the standard of care by failing to assess the mother when she reported leaking fluid, resulting in a failure to administer a full course of antenatal corticosteroids (ACS).

The trial judge concluded this failure caused the twins' cerebral palsy and awarded damages.

The obstetrician appealed the causation finding.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, with the majority holding that the trial judge made no palpable and overriding error in applying a robust and pragmatic approach to the expert evidence and concluding that the failure to administer ACS caused the injuries.

In a certified class action involving former automobile dealers whose franchises were terminated during the 2009 automotive industry restructuring, the defendants sought production of documents relating to legal advice the representative plaintiff received from its own lawyer when signing wind‑down agreements.

The moving parties argued that solicitor‑client privilege had been waived and that the advice was relevant to issues such as causation and damages.

The court held that although privilege regarding advice about the wind‑down agreement had been expressly waived during earlier cross‑examination, relevance for discovery in a class proceeding prior to the common issues trial is confined to the certified common issues.

Because the certified issues focused on the defendants’ conduct under provincial franchise legislation and alleged professional duties, and did not require examination of the individual legal advice received by class members, the requested documents were not relevant at this stage.

The motions to compel production were therefore dismissed.

A law firm brought a motion under the Solicitors Act to oppose confirmation of an Assessment Officer’s certificate that substantially reduced the firm’s solicitor‑client accounts arising from family law litigation.

The court reviewed the assessment on the standard of error in principle and held that the officer committed several errors, including mischaracterizing the complexity of the matter, improperly relying on the former Costs Grid to reduce agreed hourly rates, rejecting the firm’s team staffing model without evidentiary basis, and criticizing counsel’s skill and competence without expert evidence.

The court found the assessment reasoning arbitrary and result‑oriented.

Rather than remitting the matter for reassessment, the court substituted its own determination of the appropriate fees and disbursements.

The College of Nurses of Ontario brought disciplinary proceedings against a registered nurse for her handling of an aggressive elderly client with dementia.

The nurse intervened when the client was found yelling at a roommate.

While the panel found the initial intervention to remove the client from the roommate's bed was appropriate, it held that the nurse breached the standard of practice by subsequently removing the client's shoes and pants, which escalated the situation.

Allegations of physical abuse, aggressive handling, and improper documentation were dismissed.

The panel imposed a penalty requiring the nurse to complete remedial sessions with a nursing expert.

The defendants moved for leave to appeal an order certifying a class action brought by the plaintiff franchisee.

The defendants challenged the certification of several common issues relating to GMCL's alleged breach of statutory duties and Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP's alleged negligence and breach of contract.

The Divisional Court granted leave to appeal in part.

Leave was granted regarding the common issues of whether GMCL failed to disclose material facts and interfered with the right to associate, as these required individual inquiries.

Leave was also granted regarding the claims against the law firm, as there was conflicting authority on whether loss of chance requires proof that the plaintiff would have acted differently but for the breach.

Leave was denied for the remaining issues, and a request to stay the action against the law firm was refused.