The LCO today releases a Consultation Paper and launches province-wide consultations for its Class Actions: Objectives, Experience, and Reforms project.
The LCO review is the most comprehensive assessment of Ontario’s Class Proceedings Act since it came into force more than 25 years. Since that time, class action litigation has grown dramatically in volume, complexity and impact in Ontario and across Canada. The LCO’s project will:
- Analyze the experience with class actions in Ontario; and,
- Provide an independent, principled and practical analysis of class actions from the perspective of access to justice, judicial economy, and behaviour modification.
The Consultation Paper seeks advice from a broad range Ontarians, including class members, the legal profession, legal organizations, governments, public and private organizations, academics and any others who have an interest in class actions. Formal public consultations conclude in mid-May. The project expects to release its final report in late 2018.
Professor Bruce Elman, Chair of Law Commission of Ontario, states: “Class action litigation has grown dramatically in volume, complexity and impact since the enactment of Ontario’s Class Proceedings Act in 1993. The LCO project will independently assess whether Ontario’s legislation needs to be updated in light of that experience.”
We invite members of the legal profession, legal organizations, governments, public and private organizations, academics and everyday Ontarians with an interest in class actions laws to share their experiences with us. The consultation stage will end on May 11, 2018.