It's Not Up In The Air: Class Action Runs Out Of Fuel

Spencer v. Transat A.T. Inc., 2022 BCSC 2256 is a recent example of the BC Supreme Court exercising its gatekeeper role to screen out proposed class actions that are bound to fail. The court dismissed the plaintiff's certification application because it failed to disclose a cause of action, and then dismissed the plaintiff's application to amend her pleadings because her claims were time-barred. For both decisions, the court relied upon the Montreal Convention,¹ which the court found to be a complete code regarding the liability of international air carriers. This case illustrates the powerful role that an attack on the pleadings can play in defending a proposed class proceeding, and also highlights the role that international conventions can play in circumscribing domestic class proceedings.