Appeal Underway In Travel Industry Misleading Advertising Case

The parties in Maritime Travel Inc. v. Go Travel Direct.com Inc.,¹ a misleading advertising private action decided earlier this year, have recently filed their initial appeal and cross-appeal submissions.²

At trial, Maritime Travel, an established Canadian east-coast travel agency, alleged that upstart tour operator Go Travel Direct.com Inc. ran materially misleading newspaper advertisements. Maritime Travel claimed damages based on section 36 of the Competition Act, which provides a civil remedy for damages suffered as a result of a breach of a criminal provision of the Act. In this case, Maritime Travel alleged that Go Travel had knowingly or recklessly made representations to the public that were false or misleading in a material respect, contrary to section 52 of the Act. Developments in the law around sections 36 and 52 of the Act are important, because these sections provide the only basis for private damages for misleading advertising under the Act.