Year: 2019

Congratulations to David Sterns, who is recognized for his exceptional legal expertise and has been ranked as a leading litigation lawyer in the 2019 Lexpert Special Edition – Canada’s Leading Litigation Lawyers feature. This special edition is published in the December issue of The Globe and Mail‘s Report on Business magazine. To view the publication online, please click here.

In the class action matter of Xavier Moushoom and Jeremy Meawasige v. The Attorney General of Canada, Sotos LLP, Kugler Kandestin, LLP, and Miller Titerlie + Company (“Class Counsel”), release the following statement in response to the statement released on November 25th by the Minister of Indigenous Services and the Minister of Justice and Attorney General: Class Counsel filed a […]

If you think you are the victim of a fraud, contact your local police service immediately and report the incident to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (online or at 1‑888-495-8501). Phone scams are more sophisticated than ever. In 2018, CBC’s Marketplace exposed a large-scale call centre in India operating to bilk Canadians out of their money. […]

Ethanol-fueled appliances have increased in popularity over the years. They can add warmth or ambiance without the trouble and expense of digging a traditional fire pit. But recent fatalities and serious injuries have prompted Ontario’s Fire Marshal and Health Canada to issue safety warnings about the risks of ethanol-fueled appliances. The injuries are caused by […]

On September 20, 2019, the Supreme Court of Canada (“SCC”) released its judgment in Pioneer Corp. v Godfrey, 2019 SCC 42 (“Godfrey”). The majority’s decision is a win for Canadian consumers. The decision clarifies that the limitation period for private actions under the Competition Act is subject to the rule of discoverability. It also confirms […]

Sotos Class Actions is proud to announce that our team has again been highly ranked in the field of Dispute Resolution: Class Action (Plaintiff) by Chambers Canada in its 2020 edition. The publication states: Highly regarded Toronto-based boutique active in the plaintiff class action space. The team is particularly strong in franchising, employment, privacy and […]

Imagine this: You’ve arrived at the airport. You check in, and want to tweet about your upcoming adventure. Panic sets in as you look at your phone and realize it has less that 10% battery life left. At your gate, or built into the tables at the airport bar, you see a charging station with […]

From competition law concerns to the value of personal information, big tech companies are facing increasing scrutiny. This summer, Apple and Facebook both admitted to listening to their users’ conversations to “improve” their services. In August 2019, Facebook confirmed that it paid outside contractors to transcribe audio clips from users. It did not tell the […]

Background Competition is everywhere. In a free-market economy, companies compete for customers, buyers compete for manufacturers, employers compete for employees, etc. The theory is that, when enough participants compete, companies make what people want and offer it at a price that will sell. A competing company with a better product will attract consumers. If consumers […]

Data breaches are becoming all too common. Canadians entrust companies with all sorts of personal information. This data can be immensely profitable to fraudsters. And high-profile breaches — from Yahoo!’s in 2013 to Equifax’s in 2017 to Capital One’s this year — seem to be on the rise. Millions of Canadians have had their personal […]

If you have ever felt pressured to purchase something online that very second, it turns out that may not be your fault. A recent study out of Princeton University sheds light on “dark patterns”, or deceptive marketing practices that websites use to manipulate online shoppers – to complete a sale or spend more money.[efn_note]Arunesh Mathur, […]

Vapes, or e-cigarettes, have long been sold as a safer alternative to cigarettes, or an easier way to quit smoking. As it turns out, doctors have found that they are about as harmful as the real thing. More specifically, the flavourings post risks for your heart. CBC News reports that Joseph Wu and a team […]

Most people have had the experience of a pushy door-to-door sales representative who will not take ‘no’ for an answer.  Unfortunately, these sales tactics often result in homeowners being misled and pressured into signing contracts they don’t fully understand, for products that don’t perform as they were led to believe they would. Ontario has banned […]

A number of people have complained about a Toronto-based weight-loss scheme. The company, Weight Loss Grants, promised consumers money if they lost weight. According to Global News, the scheme offered to reimburse consumers for certain weight-loss expenses if they successfully met their goal on a certain date. The company directed participants to weight-loss services offered […]

What is a class action? A class action is a legal procedure in which one person brings a lawsuit on behalf of a group of people (the class) who have similar claims. The goal is to get justice for members of the class without each of them having to spend time, money and effort individually. […]

Anyone who knows me knows I have particularly strong view about small overcharges. I wrote an LLM thesis on the topic.[efn_note]”Keep The Change?: A behavioural approach to class action antipathy where losses are trivial” (2018) [pdf].[/efn_note] Here’s my thing: assuming companies deal with thousands or millions of customers, and assuming customers aren’t going to sue […]

Flynally. After years of airline passengers paying out of pocket for airlines’ delays and mistakes, the federal government has offered a glimmer of hope: new air passenger protection regulations. The aim is to ensure that customers are treated fairly throughout their journeys, level the playing field, and foster consumer confidence in airlines, according to the […]

Canadians send over a million electronic money transfers – over $360 million – each day. But, as CBC News reports, e-transfers may not be as secure as you think. Anne Hoover discovered this the hard way. She sent more than $1,700 by e-transfer to a friend, only to find that it was lost in transit. […]

On March 28, 2019, after filing for bankruptcy, discount airline WOW Air cancelled all operations and grounded flights leaving thousands of Canadian travellers stranded across Europe and North America. Without other options, Canadian travellers who booked return flights with WOW Air had to pay out of pocket to return home with no compensation from the […]

Social media powerhouses like Facebook seem to think that they do not have to follow Canadian advertising and privacy rules, and it’s starting to bother Canadian politicians. A new Canadian law would require online ad giants to keep records of partisan ads, including the source of the advertising. Rather than comply with the law, Google […]

On May 13, 2019, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice  granted judgment in a ground-breaking class action on behalf of Ontario consumers of “gift cards” who were charged illegal fees. Sotos LLP and Goldblatt Partners LLP jointly represent Representative Plaintiff, Joyce Bernstein against Peoples Trust Company (“PTC”).  Bernstein brought the case on behalf of consumers […]

Some fishy DNA results have drawn attention to food mislabelling in Canada. According to Global News, Dr. Jen McDonald and the students in her molecular biology course at Fanshawe College used DNA sequencing to fact-check how grocery stores and restaurants labelled their fish. Their results, which McDonald revealed on Twitter (@AwesomeBiota), were shocking. The students […]

Following the deaths of over 30 children in the last 10 years, Mattel has issued a recall of its popular Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play Sleeper. Unfortunately, according to Global New, the recall does not apply to a similar product that is being sold in Canada. While Fisher-Price and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) […]

Heinz recently released a new TV ad trying to win back the hearts of angered Canadians who felt betrayed by the condiment giant. In 2015, Heinz announced that it would move its Canadian ketchup-manufacturing operations from Leamington, Ontario to the U.S. Many Canadians believed Heinz was abandoning Leamington’s tomato farmers. John Skoczen, who worked as […]