Delay In Class Actions "Saps Public Confidence" - Saskatchewan Court Of Appeal

"Delay in civil proceedings is apt to cause prejudice to the parties," the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal wrote recently. ¹ "Unnecessary delay inevitably saps public confidence in the judicial process," it continued, upholding the decision of the Court of Queen's Bench to dismiss a class action for delay. In dismissing the appeal, the court commented pointedly on the policy importance of avoiding delay in the class actions context:

Delay in civil proceedings tends to have deleterious effects on the parties. Witnesses die, become unavailable, or simply forget things. Documents disappear. Costs soar. However, the consequences of delay go beyond the parties to an action. [.] [U]nnecessary delay inevitably saps public confidence in the judicial process as a method for dispute resolution. This is particularly true in the context of a proposed class action which, by its very nature, seeks to advance the interests of people other than the named plaintiffs who are