Class Reunion: Revisiting Class Action Justification After Twenty Years

• Author: Brian Smith
• Pages: 33-55

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CLASS REUNION: REVISITING

CL ASS ACTION JUSTIFICATION

AFTER TWENTY YEAR S

Brian Smith

Abstract: Since it was issued two decades ago, the Ontario

Law Refor m Commiss ion’s Report on Class Actions ha s been

the foundational document for any dis cussion of the Can-

adian clas s action. Judges and commentators regularly cite

the three goals or bene f‌its of class actions that were outlined

in that report, na mely, improved judicial economy, behaviour

modif‌ication, and improved acces s to justice. However, the

Report neces sarily relied largely on dat a from foreign juris-

dictions to support its f‌ind ings, and virtua lly no studies have

tested whether or not these goals a re being met by the Can-

adian clas s action. The author undertakes a critical an alysis of

the goals as stated by t he Report on Class Actions and uncover s

areas of conceptual and potent ial practical weakness. Thi s an-

alysis suggest s some viable starting poi nts for future studies

of class actions t hat can validate and improve their useful ness

in Canadia n society. Ultimately, the author concludes that the

continued assumption by the cour ts that these th ree goals

are being forwarded m ay be correct, but is not justif‌ied by

existing d ata. The fact that many valid cr iticisms have been

raised sugge sts that studies of Canad ian class actions a nd

their results should be u ndertaken to ensu re that the class ac-

tion maintai ns a useful and benef‌icial role in Canada.