Cartel Conduct: Courts Reject Conspiracy Claims In Proposed Class Actions

Recent decisions from the British Columbia Supreme Court in Latifi v. The TDL Group Corp., 2021 BCSC 2183 and the Federal Court of Canada in Jensen v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., 2021 FC 1185 involved proposed class action suits alleging breaches of the criminal conspiracy provisions in section 45 of the Competition Act. These decisions exemplify an increased willingness by the courts to scrutinize the proposed causes of action and pleadings in determining whether proposed class actions should move forward.

Background

Latifi and Jensen were proposed class action suits. Each alleged breaches of the criminal conspiracy provisions in section 45 of the Act. Private parties can sue for damages suffered as a result of such breaches.