A class action,also known as a class-action lawsuit,class suit,or representative action,is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class action originated in the United States and is still predominantly an American phenomenon,but Canada,as well as several European countries with civil law,have made changes in recent years to allow consumer organizations to bring claims on behalf of consumers.
In the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth countries,a King's Counsel is a senior trial lawyer appointed by the monarch of the country as a 'Counsel learned in the law'. When the reigning monarch is a woman,the title is called Queen's Counsel.
Allan Michael Rock is a Canadian lawyer,former politician,diplomat and university administrator. He was Canada's ambassador to the United Nations (2004–2006) and had previously served in the Cabinet of Jean Chrétien,most notably as Justice Minister (1993–1997) and Health Minister (1997–2002). During his time in government,he was accused of ethical improprieties after accepting free hospitality from the Irving family,with whom his department had financial dealings.
John Sopinka,was a Canadian lawyer and puisne justice on the Supreme Court of Canada,the first Ukrainian-Canadian appointed to the high court.
Charles Alan Harnick,is a former politician in Ontario,Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1999,and served as a senior cabinet minister in the government of Mike Harris.
The Arbitration Roundtable of Toronto is made up of several litigators,academics,arbitrators,and mediators from the Greater Toronto Area. The group promotes arbitration as an alternative method of conflict resolution over litigation,especially in commercial suits. Members include commercial litigators from Toronto law firms including some of the Seven Sisters of Bay Street. Each member has experience and interest in promoting commercial Arbitration. The group dedicates its time to encouraging this form of Dispute resolution through seminars,papers,and talks.
Robert James Sharpe,OC,FRSC is a Canadian lawyer,author,academic,and judge. He was dean of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law from 1990 to 1995 and a judge of the Court of Appeal for Ontario from 1999 to 2020.
William ("Bill") S. Berardino,is a British Columbia lawyer who was appointed by the provincial government to serve as a special prosecutor in the trials associated with the BC Legislature Raids.
Murray Frank LLP is a law firm based in New York City that specializes in class action litigation,particularly in cases involving federal securities law,federal antitrust law,ERISA,and state consumer protection law.
The payment card interchange fee and merchant discount antitrust litigation is a United States class-action lawsuit filed in 2005 by merchants and trade associations against Visa,Mastercard,and numerous financial institutions that issue payment cards. The suit was filed because of price fixing and other allegedly anti-competitive trade practices in the credit card industry. In February 2019,U.S. District Court Judge Margo K. Brodie approved a settlement in the case that amounted to $5.54 billion. After four more years of litigation,in March 2023,the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the District Court’s final approval order,with a modification reducing service awards,and allowing the claims process to move forward.
Joseph Groia,is a Canadian lawyer specializing in securities litigation. He has been ranked as one of Canada's 500 Leading Lawyers (Lexpert) since 2000 and is consistently rated as one of Canada's top securities litigators by the same publication. He has worked on many of Canada's leading securities cases,including Asbestos Corp.,Bre-X Minerals Ltd.,Canadian Tire,Cinar Corporation,Hollinger,Torstar/Southam,Philip Services and YBM.
Robert "Bob" J. Giuffra Jr. is an American attorney. He is Co-Chair and a partner of Sullivan &Cromwell in New York,and is a member of their Management Committee.
Paul Stephen Andrew Lamek was a lawyer and Justice of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
Eric Gibbs is an American attorney at Gibbs Law Group LLP in the United States. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the Consumer Attorneys of California. As a part of the American Association for Justice,he co-chairs the Consumer Privacy and Data Breach Litigation Group and the Lumber Liquidators Litigation Group,and serves as the secretary for the Qui Tam Litigation Group.
Ervin A. Gonzalez was an American civil trial attorney whose practice focused on wrongful death,personal injury,medical negligence,product liability and class action torts. He was a partner with the law firm Colson Hicks Eidson in the firm's Coral Gables office.
Paul B. Schabas is a judge of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
M. David Lepofsky is a Canadian academic,retired lawyer,disability advocate. Blind for much of his life,Lepofsky was named one of Canada's most influential lawyers in 2010.
Christopher A. Seeger is an American lawyer who specializes in multidistrict mass tort and class action litigation. He received the most multidistrict litigation (MDL) appointments of any lawyer between 2016 and 2019 according to an 2020 ALM study. Seeger is a founding partner of the firm Seeger Weiss LLP.
Baron &Budd,P.C. is an American plaintiffs' law firm headquartered in Dallas,Texas. Opponents of mass tort litigation have criticized the firm for the zealousness with which it represents its clients,and for the political activities of some of its attorneys.
Philip Michael Epstein is a Canadian family law lawyer.
