MINISTRY OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF ONTARIO

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On October 1st, the following amendments will come into effect (having been passed as part of the Smarter and Stronger Justice Act, 2020, which received Royal Assent on July 8, 2020. 

The amendments to the CPA will, subject to specified exceptions, only apply to class proceedings commenced on or after October 1, 2020.

The CPA, as amended, can be accessed at the following link: https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/92c06

Regulations and Regulatory Amendments

The following new regulations and regulatory amendments have been made to support the amendments to the CPA:

• A new General regulation under the CPA, which includes:
  • Details regarding the registration of proceedings commenced under the CPA; and
  • Technical rules related to the timing of the commencement of a proposed class proceeding that includes a claim under s. 138.3 of the Securities Act (Liability for secondary market disclosure);
• A new Subrogated Claims regulation under the CPA, containing details necessary to implement s.27.3 of the CPA, as amended;
• Consequential amendments to O. Reg. 771/92 (Class Proceedings) under the Law Society Act; and 
• Minor amendments to R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194 (Rules of Civil Procedure) under the Courts of Justice Act.

Amendments to the Courts of Justice Act and its regulations:

• · Increased the maximum amount of a claim in Small Claims Court from $25,000 to $35,000.
• · Increased the minimum amount of a claim that may be appealed to the Divisional Court from $2,500 to $3,500.
• Expanded access to the Simplified Procedure in civil court to simplify complex processes and reduce the legal costs associated with cases involving modest values :
• People and businesses with civil court claims up to $200,000 will be able to use the Simplified Procedure process, up from the previous claim amount of $100,000.
• Improve efficiency in the Divisional Court by clarifying court document filing requirements.
• Limit factums (documents) on motions for leave to appeal to facts, issues, statements of law, and authorities that are relevant to a ground on which leave to appeal may be granted.
• Limit motion records to documents which are referred to in the party’s factum and which are relevant to a ground on which leave to appeal may be granted.

Amendments to a regulation under the Law Society Act relate to the Law Society Tribunal processes of the Hearing Division:

· For certain types of motions, eliminating the requirement for the same members who will hear the merits of the proceeding to also hear the motion.

· Allow a single member panel, rather than a three-member panel, to exclude the public and/or witnesses from all or part of a hearing.

MAG has filed two regulations to establish a small estate process in Ontario. (both effective April 1):

1. O. Reg. 110/21, made under the Estates Act establishing a small estate value of up to $150,000.

2. O. Reg. 111/21, made under the Courts of Justice Act amending the Rules of Civil Procedure (RCP) to establish a small estate process.  The regulations are described in Ontario Regulatory Registry notices at: 21-MAG005 and 21-MAG006.

The RCP amendment regulation establishes a simplified probate process for estates valued at up to $150,000 as an alternative to the existing probate system. 

New rule 74.1 allows for a court issued Small Estate Certificate with the equivalent legal effect to a Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee, except that authority is limited to the estate assets specifically listed in the application. The rule specifies the requirements for applications for a Small Estate Certificate, including the requirements for filing, for notice to persons entitled to share in the estate and for applying to seek authority for estate assets that are discovered after the issuance of a Small Estate Certificate. 

Please note: The small estates limit of $150,000 will apply for the purpose of determining eligibility to apply to the court for a Small Estate Certificate. It does not impact the Estate Administration Tax Act exemption limit of $50,000. 

Additional information is available in ENGLISH 

and FRENCH 

Amendments to the Solicitors Act in regards to contingency fees have been approved to come into force on July 1, 2021.  

Order In Council regarding the Solicitors Act 

In addition, there is a new regulation on contingency fees, which you can find on elaws

The standard form agreement can be found on the Law Society website.

English

French

Following an EY Canada line-by-line review of Government Expenditures, the Ontario Government identified opportunities to move toward full cost recovery for court and transactional services.

After a public and stakeholder consultation period, the new fees were introduced in April 2019.  

NEW GUIDE TO FEE SCHEDULE

On March 26, 2019, Doug Downey, MPP (Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte) and then Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Finance (currently AG), filed his Private Member's Bill for first reading in the Legislature.  Bill 88 proposed several changes to the Planning Act, which FOLA enthusiastically supported.  

Bill 88, Planning Amendment Act, 2019

FOLA's endorsement letter

FOLA's endorsement letter of LawPro's support of this Bill

While the Bill died following Doug's appointment to AG, FOLA is hopeful that it will be reintroduced as a Government Bill in the near future.

Beginning January 1, 2020, the maximum claim filed in Small Claims Court will increase to $35,000. Currently, all claims over $25,000 must proceed in the Superior Court of Justice — one of the busiest courts in Canada — where litigation can take years and can involve expensive legal representation. 

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