Opportunities for private equity (PE) investment were front-and-centre at CVCA Invest Canada ’25 in Calgary from May 27 to 29. The event is Canada’s biggest showcase of PE and venture capital and Bennett Jones was a Platinum…
more
/ Energy & Utilities, International Law & Trade, Science, Computers, & Technology
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) is undertaking a significant overhaul of National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (the Instrument), Form 43-101F1 – Technical Report (the Form) and…
more
/ Environmental Law, Indigenous Peoples, Securities Law
In Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance v Honda Canada, 2025 ONSC 2856, the Ontario Superior Court upheld an arbitral panel's conclusion that an umbrella insurance policy covered settled class counsel fees, but not settlement…
more
/ Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), Commercial Law & Contracts, Insurance
In May 2025, Canada’s natural resources minister expressed the government’s intention for reduced approval timelines for major energy projects from five years to two…
more
/ Energy & Utilities, Intellectual Property, Science, Computers, & Technology
In the recent decision of Ursic v Country Lumber Ltd., 2025 BCSC 970 (Country Lumber), the Supreme Court of British Columbia held that there is no presumption that dependent contractors ought to receive less reasonable notice of…
more
/ Commercial Law & Contracts, Labor & Employment Law
We begin with developments of national significance. First, we discuss the amendments to the Competition Act which, effective June 2025, could open the door to a novel quasi-class action scheme entitling private plaintiffs to…
more
/ Antitrust & Trade Regulation, Civil Procedure, Securities Law
The evidentiary burden on plaintiffs to have a case certified—i.e., the “some basis in fact” standard—has been described as a “low bar” in countless cases. Plaintiffs cite the “low bar” in trying to certify their cases, and…
more
/ Personal Injury, Products Liability, Toxic Torts
On January 30, 2025, the Québec Court of Appeal rendered a judgment in Salko c. Financière Banque Nationale inc., 2025 QCCA 74 (Salko) providing clarity on the application of the Quebec Consumer Protection Act (QCPA) and on the…
more
/ Civil Procedure, Consumer Protection, Securities Law
In 2024, Ontario’s highest court affirmed the principle that a certifiable tort claim requires a plaintiff to provide some basis in fact for a present, materialized injury that is “sufficiently serious.” A legally compensable…
more
/ Personal Injury, Products Liability, Toxic Torts
Many class actions take several years to litigate. Some may take even longer, because they sit idle for months or—in some cases—decades. In late 2024 and in early 2025, the Ontario Court of Appeal issued two decisions clarifying…
more
/ Civil Procedure
The past year has introduced some uncertainty for institutional defendants facing privacy breach class actions in Canada. While Ontario’s Court of Appeal has been consistent in its approach to class actions against “database…
more
/ Business Torts, Civil Procedure, Privacy
A plaintiff’s obligation to establish “some basis in fact” for a common issue is acknowledged as a low bar. Several Canadian appellate courts have, however, confirmed a “two-step test” as the standard analytical framework. Under…
more
/ Antitrust & Trade Regulation, Civil Procedure, Education Law
In a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment in April 2025, the Government of Alberta issued a Director Order that significantly altered the legal landscape concerning work site incident scene disturbances. In essence, we have returned…
more
/ Administrative Law, Construction Law, Labor & Employment Law
In an era where digital threats are more sophisticated than ever, cybersecurity has become a pressing concern for family enterprises. These businesses are attractive targets for cyberattacks and need to balance the critical…
more
/ Commercial Law & Contracts, Privacy, Science, Computers, & Technology
The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) has endorsed the constitutionality of British Columbia (BC) legislation empowering the province to seek recovery of opioid epidemic healthcare costs in a proposed class action brought on behalf…
more
/ Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Toxic Torts
