Introduction

• Author: Harvey T. Strosberg, Q.C.
• Pages: 131-132

131

IN TR ODUCTION

Harvey T. Strosberg, Q.C.

In this edition of The Canadian Class Action Review, Canadian lawyers and

students offer their expertise and insights on wide-ranging issues in class

actions, including forum selection and the development of the real and

substantial connection test, leave application requirements, best practices

for plaintiff ’s counsel in pharmaceutical drug class actions, the problem

of establishing causation for the indeterminate plaintiff, the effects of the

Supreme Court’s decision in Kerr v. Danier on the Ontario costs regime,

and third-party litigation funding of class actions.

In the first article in this collection, “Exclusive Forum Selection in

National Class Actions: A Common Issues Approach,” Scott Maidment

argues for the application of forum non conveniens principles to pro-

hibit the prosecution of parallel national class actions in more than one

Canadian province. He contends that a national class action should pro-

ceed only in the forum with the most real and substantial connection to

the common issues.

Continuing on the topic of forum selection, Shaun Finn and Louis

Brousseau elucidate how the digital age has had a new and complex

impact on class proceedings in the US and Canada. The authors explore

the previous state of the law in each of these jurisdictions and examine

how the Intermix case affects the law in both countries.

In “Silver v. Imax and Ainslie v. CV Technologies: What has Been Left

Out of the Leave Requirement” Andrea Laing and Brian Donnelly cover

the enactment of Bill 198, now part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act,

and the new leave application implemented under this legislation. Since

no specific decisions regarding the leave application had been released at

the time of writing, the authors analyze Silver v. Imax Corp. and Ainslie

v. CV Technologies Inc. to aid in identifying strategic areas of concern for

defendants’ counsel in respect of the leave application.