After nearly a year following its inception, this matter will be proceeding to its first court hearing on September 22nd, 2023, in Cayuga, Ontario. This will take place in person, and the Court will be open to public attendance.
The Province has brought a motion asking the Court to strike out the Statement of Claim on the basis that it discloses no cause of action. You can find a copy of the Province’s Notice of Motion here and a copy of its factum here.
This motion, brought under Rule 21 of the Rules of Civil Procedure, allows parties to ask the Court to screen claims at an early stage, essentially “weeding out” actions that have no chance of success.
Our client disagrees with the Province’s arguments and has submitted her counter arguments in a Responding Factum. You can find a copy of that document here.
While the Province is entitled to bring this type of motion, it has unfortunately led to a significant delay. After this motion was brought forward, the Crown requested five additional months to prepare for this motion hearing, despite our office’s insistence that we could be ready to argue the motion within just 2 weeks.
While some delay is an inevitable part of any complex legal proceeding, this issue in particular seems to attract institutional heel-dragging.
If the Province is not successful in its motion, the next hurdle will be the process of “certification”, where the Court will determine if the claim should proceed on behalf of a class of litigants, and whether class membership has been adequately defined.
A question our office receives constantly is “how can I participate?” At this time, you are not required to take any action.
This page will be updated as the claim progresses. If you have an inquiry about a legal matter specific to you, separate from the above-noted class action lawsuit, please contact us at: david@marshalllawgroup.ca