Ward Branch

A proposed class action alleged that a charitable tax receipt program associated with private Christian school tuition resulted in participants being reassessed and penalized after the Canada Revenue Agency disallowed the tax credits.

The representative plaintiff moved on consent for certification for settlement purposes, approval of a settlement fund of up to $1.5 million, approval of class counsel’s contingency fee, and an honorarium.

The court reviewed the certification requirements under s. 5(1) of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992 and concluded that the criteria were met in the settlement context.

Applying established factors governing settlement approval, the court held the agreement was fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class.

The court also approved the requested contingency fee, disbursements, and the representative plaintiff honorarium.

The plaintiffs sought certification of a proposed class action arising from explosions at a propane facility in Toronto that allegedly caused personal injury, property damage, and evacuation of nearby residents.

The court considered the certification requirements under s. 5 of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992.

It held that the pleadings against certain landlord defendants failed to disclose a viable cause of action because the allegations relying on agency, single‑group enterprise, and alter‑ego theories lacked material facts capable of piercing the corporate veil.

Those pleadings were struck with leave to amend and the certification motion against those defendants was adjourned.

The proceeding was otherwise certified as a class action against the remaining defendants, with common issues approved and representative plaintiffs appointed.

On a consent motion in a proposed class action concerning ticket resale practices, the court considered certification for settlement purposes and approval of a negotiated settlement under the Class Proceedings Act, 1992.

The action alleged that the defendants’ primary and secondary market ticket sales violated the Ticket Speculation Act through resale pricing and related practices.

The court held that the criteria for certification under s. 5(1) were satisfied, including the existence of an identifiable class and common issue relating to whether the defendants breached the statute.

The proposed settlement provided refunds of $36 per ticket to class members and required changes to the defendants’ ticket resale website practices.

The court concluded the settlement and the requested contingency fee arrangement were fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the class.

The representative plaintiff brought a motion for approval of a settlement agreement in a class action arising from the loss of an unencrypted USB key containing the personal information of over 83,000 individuals who received H1N1 vaccines.

The proposed settlement established a claims process for class members who suffered economic harm, with a claim period ending in August 2016, but provided no direct cash payments for anxiety or distress.

Despite objections from some class members regarding the lack of immediate compensation and the length of the claims period, the court approved the settlement as fair and reasonable.

The court noted that the risk of identity theft had largely dissipated over time, making the prospects of success at trial poor, and also approved class counsel fees of $500,000 plus a percentage of future claims.