Class Actions in Canada

The Promise and Reality of Access to Justice

By Jasminka Kalajdzic

SERIES: Law and Society

UBC Press

Whatever deficits remain in the Canadian project to make justice available to all, class actions have been heralded as a success story. Beginning in 1979 in Quebec, and in the ’90s for most of English-speaking Canada, class actions were introduced to overcome barriers to justice for those who would otherwise have no recourse to the courts. Class Actions in Canada critically and empirically examines whether collective litigation is meeting this primary goal.

First drawing on foundational literature and recent jurisprudence to propose a conceptualization that moves beyond mere access to a court procedure, leading class action scholar Jasminka Kalajdzic then methodically assesses survey data and case studies to determine how class action practice fulfills or falls short of its objectives.

Class Actions in Canada takes a rigorous, evidence-based approach. With class actions becoming increasingly controversial in the United States and collective redress mechanisms being cautiously adopted in many other parts of the world, this is a timely exploration of collective litigation as it has evolved in Canada over the past twenty-five years, and particularly in Ontario.

RELATED TOPICS: Law, Law & Society, Law & the Courts

An unprecedented contribution – Kalajdzic deftly melds theory, empiricism, and illustrative anecdote to fully describe class litigation in Canada. Much has been achieved since class actions became ubiquitous in Canada, but Kalajdzic’s book demonstrates how much more might be done to fulfill the regulatory and justice-access goals of aggregate litigation. Craig Jones, professor, Faculty of Law, Thompson Rivers University

Class Actions in Canada offers an empirically founded approach for addressing theoretical questions relating to access to justice, including the time-consuming and cost-consuming nature of litigation. Full of insightful comments and references, this book will serve everyone interested in this topic: lawyers, judges, academics, and the public. Catherine Piché, associate professor, Faculty of Law, Université de Montréal

Jasminka Kalajdzic is an associate professor and former associate dean of law at the University of Windsor and has a background in private practice as a civil litigator. She is the editor of Accessing Justice: Appraising Class Actions Ten Years after Dutton, Hollick & Rumley and co-author, with Warren K. Winkler, Paul M. Perell, and Alison Warner, of The Law of Class Actions in Canada. She is also the co-lead researcher of the Law Commission of Ontario’s Class Actions Project.

Introduction

1 The Facts: Survey Results

2 The Facts: Two Case Studies

3 Access to Justice

4 Selecting Cases

5 Settlements

6 Fees

7 Costs

Conclusion

Appendices

Notes

Index