The UK Supreme Court gave its judgment in Mastercard Incorporated and others (Appellants) v Walter Hugh Merricks CBE (Respondent) [UKSC 2019/0118] on 11 December 2020. It confirmed the decision made by the Court of Appeal that a representative applying for certification of a class must show that they have a method with a realistic prospect of assessing loss across the whole class and that the data required to apply that methodology is likely to be…
The UK Supreme Court gave its judgment in Mastercard Incorporated and others (Appellants) v Walter Hugh Merricks CBE (Respondent) [UKSC 2019/0118] on 11 December 2020. It confirmed the decision made by the Court of Appeal that a representative applying for certification of a class must show that they have a method with a realistic prospect of assessing loss across the whole class and that the data required to apply that methodology is likely to be…
Join Baker McKenzie for a webinar on “Looking Ahead: Class Actions and Consumer Claims in 2021” to be held on Thursday, 14 January 2021 at 14:00 UK / 15:00 CET. The rapid expansion of class actions outside of the US has brought new risks for global multinationals and a renewed need to consider strategies when defending against claims across jurisdictions. A panel of international specialists from Baker McKenzie, along with our guest speaker, Andrew Hildreth, Senior Managing Director…
On 24 November, the European Parliament approved the final text of the EU Representative Actions Directive. The approved directive will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the EU’s Official Journal. Member States will then have 24 months to transpose the directive into national law and an extra six months in which to implement it. The new rules will apply to representative actions brought on or after its date of application. Although Member…
The Supreme Court of Canada has authorized a Quebec class action against an investment fund dealer and investment fund manager. The class members are customers who allege they were insufficiently informed about the risk profile of two investment products. See Desjardins Financial Services Firm Inc. v Asselin, 2020 SCC 30. The decision to authorize the class action does not confirm the merits of the allegations. The Supreme Court reaffirmed that “the threshold for authorizing a…
China has launched a new class action mechanism to crack down on corporate malfeasance in the securities market. Although legal actions by individual investors were possible previously, this was often difficult and costly. Under the new mechanism, the China Securities Investor Services Centre, a Chinese government-affiliated body, can sue on behalf of no fewer than 50 investors in a company, on an opt-in basis. The finding by a court or a regulator that a company…
For many hundreds of years since old English common law, a public nuisance cause of action allowed the government to stop, quite literally, a public nuisance that threatened the welfare of a community. The most common public nuisance cause of action involved real property—for example, pollution of the air, water, or land. But public nuisance causes of action also have involved other threats to the welfare of a community, such as storing fireworks or explosives,…
1. Summary of the proposed bill Brazil’s House of Representatives currently discusses Bill No. 11,275/2018, introducing new rules for private cartel damage claims. The proposal aims to update the Brazilian Antitrust Law by encouraging follow-on cartel damage claims in a way that does not jeopardize incentives for settlements and leniency applications with the Brazilian antitrust authority (CADE). The main changes proposed are the following: Double damages liability for cartel participants, except for companies that apply…
In Godfrey v Pioneer, 2019 SCC 42 (“Godfrey“), the Supreme Court of Canada has lowered the bar for certifying price-fixing class actions brought under the federal Competition Act, while also allowing new categories of claimants to participate as class members. The decision arose from a class action filed in British Columbia against a group of 42 foreign companies who manufactured optical disc drives and related products. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants conspired to fix…
UPDATE: The European Commission published the agreed text of the directive on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers and repealing Directive 2009/22/EC here. We will publish an analysis of the text in due course and hold a webinar on the implications of this reform later in the year. Please do let us know if you would like to brainstorm the opportunities and implications for your business. An updated (and reportedly…