Champerty & maintenance

Houle v. St. Jude Medical Inc.

Ontario Superior Court / Divisional Court · Canada · 2017-18 · Decided

Citation/Docket: 2017 ONSC 5129; 2018 ONSC 6352 (Div. Ct.)

Parties & Funders

Posture: Court approval of class-action LFA
Funder(s) involved: (Class action funder)

Background

Ontario courts reviewed a proposed class-action funding agreement; the first version was rejected as champertous (excessive funder compensation/control), then approved after renegotiation.

Holding & Outcome

LFAs in Ontario class actions require court approval; courts police funder returns, control, and privilege safeguards.

Practical Lesson

Court-approval regimes (Canada, and analogously the CAT) preview where U.S. class-action funding oversight may head.

Matters like this one often turn on expert testimony, on valuation, industry custom and practice, legal ethics, or damages. The Institute partners with world-class expert witness referral companies for this purpose.

Compiled from public sources (court filings, published opinions, and secondary reporting) as part of the Institute's Phase 1 Dispute Library research. This is educational material, not legal advice; case citations should be independently verified before relied upon.

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