A "Monster Of Complexity" — Certification Denied In DRAM Price-Fixing Cases

The B.C. Supreme Court recently refused to make what would have been the first-ever contested certification order in a class action brought on behalf of indirect and direct purchasers in a Canadian price-fixing case. The plaintiff sought to certify a class action on behalf of B.C. residents who had purchased dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or products containing DRAM, alleging that the defendants had engaged in an international conspiracy to fix prices of these computer memory chips. The court refused certification, finding that the plaintiff had failed to propose a viable class-wide method of establishing harm and liability. A related class action was similarly denied by the Québec Superior Court, albeit on different grounds.