Can I bring a class action for a contract dispute in Ontario?
Class actions are available in Ontario under the Class Proceedings Act, 1992 and can include claims for breach of contract where the same contractual wrong affected many people in substantially the same way. Common examples include standard form consumer contracts where a company breached identical terms in identical agreements with thousands of customers.
To certify a class action, the court must be satisfied that the claim discloses a cause of action, there is an identifiable class of plaintiffs, there are common issues of law or fact, a class proceeding is the preferable procedure, and there is a suitable representative plaintiff.
The class action process is managed by the representative plaintiff and their counsel. Individual class members generally do not need to take active steps — they are included unless they opt out. If the case succeeds or settles, class members share in the recovery, typically after class counsel's fees are deducted.
Class actions involving consumer contracts, bank charges, telecommunications contracts, and similar mass-consumer situations are not uncommon in Ontario. If you believe a business breached the same contract terms with many others in your situation, speaking with a class action lawyer is worthwhile — many work on contingency for this type of case.
Key takeaways
- Ontario's Class Proceedings Act allows class actions for breach of contract.
- The claim must raise common issues affecting an identifiable group of plaintiffs.
- Individual class members typically participate without actively managing the case.
- Many class action lawyers work on contingency for consumer contract claims.