Discovery In Class Actions: The Scope Of Parties’ Obligations

"Discovery" is a broad term that describes the procedure by which evidence is obtained and collected for the purposes of litigation. Each party has the right to see all of the relevant documentary evidence in a party's possession, and to examine the other parties orally, in order to understand the evidence that will be used to prove the claim and advance the defence.  Discovery is potentially more challenging in a class action than in other types of litigation, due to the time frame of the events at issue, complexity of the subject matter, and prospect that litigation will span a number of years.

In Ontario, the Rules of Civil Procedure provide that every party to an action has the obligation to disclose "every document relevant to any matter in issue in an action that is or has been in the possession, control or power of a party", whether the documents are favourable or not.¹  This obligation is very broad, and is ongoing throughout the life of the litigation.