*Content from this article is from the Case Law Compendium
for the Defense Research Institute's (DRI) Product liability
Conference held February 2025. Canadian contributions by BLG's
Edona Vila and Robert Stefanelli.
There have been several significant new developments in product
liability cases across Canada in the past year. These decisions,
arising from Ontario, Québec, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and
British Columbia, provide important insights into how courts are
deciding product liability matters.
Palmer v. Teva Canada Ltd., 2024 ONCA 220
Plaintiffs must plead actual, demonstrable harm or loss
for a liability claim in negligence to succeed.
In Palmer v. Teva Canada Ltd., the Court
of Appeal for Ontario reviewed the Superior Court of Justice's
dismissal of a motion to certify a class proceeding. The plaintiffs
alleged the presence of carcinogens in Valsartan, a blood-pressure
medication produced by the defendant pharmaceutical company. The
plaintiffs argued
