Over the past few years Québec has seen its fair share of "industry" class actions, whereby a petitioner seeks to institute a class action against a number of companies who operate in the same industry despite the fact that the petitioner had no relationship (for example, a contract) with all of the companies.  Such was the case in Agropur where the petitioner, who had only purchased milk processed by one dairy, sought to institute a class action against a number of dairies based on claims that the milk he purchased had a lower fat content than was required by the relevant by-laws and that had been advertised.  By judgment of December 12, 2004, the Québec Superior Court ("QSC") dismissed the proposed $89 million class action and held that the fact that the petitioner did not have a cause of action against a number of the respondent companies was fatal to his claim against them.  

Six months later, in Billette v. Toyota Canada Inc. et al., the QSC, relying on previous decisions that had authorized class actions against companies in respect of which the petitioner had no cause of action, authorized a class action against 19 car manufacturers and related finance companies despite the fact that the petitioner had only contracted with one manufacturer. 

By its October 18, 2006 judgment in Agropur, the QCA decisively put an end to this controversial issue and held that an individual who seeks to institute a class action against a number of companies must have a cause of action against each of them. The QCA noted that the requisite interest to bring an ordinary action was equally applicable to class actions and it rejected the appellant's submissions that Québec's class action rules did not require that a petitioner have a cause of action against each respondent and that the necessary interest to sue should not be measured based on his individual action, but rather in light of the collective nature of the relief sought on behalf of the proposed class. The QCA reaffirmed the principle that before a class action is authorized it does not exist on a collective basis and that the proposed action of the individual petitioner must satisfy the requisite statutory criteria before the class action will be authorized, which includes that the petitioner establish that the facts alleged seem to justify the conclusions sought against all of the respondents. 

The QCA's decision in Agropur is clearly a welcome one for companies doing business in Québec. 

Davies is involved in some of the largest and most complex class action litigation matters in the country.  Please do not hesitate to call David Stolow (514-841-6567), Marc-André Boutin (514-841-6527) or Nick Rodrigo (514-841-6548) if you would like further information on this case or to obtain a complete copy of the decision. 

Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, with over 235 lawyers, practises nationally and internationally from offices in Toronto, Montréal, New York and an affiliate in Paris and is consistently at the heart of the largest and most complex commercial and financial matters on behalf of its North American and overseas clients.   

The information and comments herein are for the general information of the reader and are not intended as advice or opinions to be relied upon in relation to any particular circumstance. For particular applications of the law to specific situations, the reader should seek professional advice.