The Canadian experience with class actions: access to justice or just a new moneymaking product line for lawyers?

Authors

  • Garry D. Watson

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14296/ac.v2003i45.1265

Keywords:

Access to justice, Legal aid, Administration of justice, Canada

Abstract

The author looks at emergence of class actions in Canadian litigation and considers the extent to which they provide access to justice or are just another profitable product line for lawyers. A class action is one in which a representative plaintiff sues on behalf of a defined class of claimants whose claims raise a common issue of fact or law. Article by Professor Garry D. Watson QC (Professor of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School, Torono and IALS Inns of Court Fellow). Published in Amicus Curiae - Journal of the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies and its Society for Advanced Legal Studies. The Journal is produced by the Society for Advanced Legal Studies at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies, University of London.

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Amicus Curiae issue 45 cover

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Issue

Issue 45 (2003)

Section

Articles

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