SCC Waves Goodbye To Waiver Of Tort

On July 24, 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) released its decision in Atlantic Lottery Corp. Inc. v. Babstock (Babstock). In its first definitive statement on this issue, the SCC held that waiver of tort is not an independent cause of action, putting to rest the long-running debate in Canadian jurisprudence on this topic. In this pivotal decision, a majority of the SCC held that the doctrine of “waiver of tort” is not an independent cause of action in Canadian law and the term itself is apt to generate confusion and should be abandoned. The SCC allowed the appeals of the defendant, Atlantic Lottery Corp. (ALC), from the lower courts' decisions, setting aside the order certifying the action as a class proceeding and striking the plaintiffs' statement of claim.