Product Liability Update: Q1 2024

Ontario Court of Appeal clarifies standards for compensable psychological injury in product liability claims: Palmer v. Teva

On March 27, 2024, the Court of Appeal for Ontario released its much-awaited decision in Palmer v. Teva. ¹ The decision sends a clear signal that claims based on weak science and remote or tenuous risks of future injury are unlikely to be certified. It is consistent with the clear trend in the Ontario jurisprudence refusing to certify class actions in the absence of compensable injury to class members.²

Background

Palmer v. Teva is one of a number of proposed class actions in Canada alleging psychological damage from the alleged increased risk of cancer resulting from exposure to nitrosamine impurities, which have been found in various prescription and over-the-counter medications.³ Palmer concerned allegations that the defendants' valsartan blood pressure medications contained N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and N-nitrosodiethylamine