Initial applications must follow a prescribed format which is set out in section 3 of the Regulation and include:
- A legal opinion on the likelihood of certification,
- A legal opinion describing and assessing the merits of the applicant’s case; and
- An itemized statement of financial support being requested.
Materials must be bound into a “Class Proceeding Funding Application Record,” with tab numbers that correspond to the paragraph numbers of section 3(1) of the Regulation.
Pursuant to section 3 of O. Reg. 771/92 applicants must provide the following materials as part of an initial application for funding:
Tab 1 If the applicant is an individual, his or her name, address, telephone number and fax number, if any.
Tab 2 If the applicant is a corporation, its name, head office address, telephone number and fax number and a copy of its articles of incorporation.
Tab 3 Each defendant’s name.
Tab 4 A statement indicating which of the stages in the proceeding, as set out in paragraphs 1 to 6 of section 2, the application addresses.
Tab 5 A copy of the pleadings and any court orders relating to the proceeding, in particular any statements of defence, certification materials and facta related to any motion in the case to date.
Tab 6 A description of the class and an estimate of the number of members in the class.
Tab 7 A legal opinion describing and assessing the merits of the applicant’s case, and any other information and documents the applicant considers appropriate for this purpose.
Tab 8 If the applicant has not yet applied for certification of the proceeding as a class proceeding, a statement indicating when the applicant will do so.
Tab 9 If the proceeding has not yet been certified as a class proceeding, a legal opinion assessing the likelihood that it will be certified.
Tab 10 A statement of the financial support being requested, itemized according to the purposes for which it is being requested.
Tab 11 Such information and documents as the applicant considers appropriate to address the following matters:
a. whether the applicant has made reasonable efforts to raise funds from other sources. The applicant’s counsel should disclose the amount, if any, of funds the applicant has or expects to raise to supplement any funding granted by the Committee, taking into account the nature of the case and the circumstances of the applicant;
b. whether the applicant has a clear and reasonable proposal for the use of any funds awarded; and
c. whether the applicant has appropriate financial controls to ensure that any funds awarded are spent for the purposes of the award. (See s. 59.3(4) of the Law Society Act.)
Tab 12 An affidavit by the applicant stating that the information provided by him, her, or it in connection with the application is true.
Tab 13 Authorization to the Committee and to the Board of Trustees of The Law Foundation of Ontario (the “Board”) to verify the information provided by the applicant in connection with the application.
Tab 14 The name and address of the applicant’s lawyer.
Tab 15 A statement by the lawyer indicating that he or she will accept payments from the Class Proceedings Fund in connection with the applicant and will use them for the purposes for which the payments are made. O. Reg. 771/92, s. 3 (1).
The Committee requests that the initial application record also contain the following Tabs:
Tab 16 A list of the individual lawyers expected to participate in the prosecution of the case, a description of their experience and qualifications, a statement as to whether a contingency fee agreement has been entered into under s.33 of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992, and an estimate of the aggregate number of hours the applicant’s counsel expects to and is prepared to devote to the case;
Tab 17 Material addressing the issue of the defendant’s ability to pay any judgment and comply with any non-monetary relief which may ultimately be granted against it, and, if it appears the defendant will not be able to pay or comply, explaining why financial support should nevertheless be granted;
Tab 18 The plan or draft plan which has been or is intended to be filed pursuant to s.5(I)(e)(ii) of the Class Proceedings Act, 1992;
Tab 19 The applicant counsel’s best estimate as to all disbursements expected to be incurred up to and including trial; and
Tab 20 The applicant counsel’s summary of all anticipated expert evidence which will be required. For greater clarity, the name of the expert will not be required at this stage if the identity is unknown, but the applicant’s counsel must provide a summary of all types of experts anticipated as well as the type of expert testimony they will provide and the expected cost. The applicant must also provide a summary of all anticipated disbursements which will be requested up to and including any appeals.
Precedents to guide you in preparing the Application record: Tabs 1 – 20, can be seen in this Sample Application Record Word document.
One electronic copy of this application must be forwarded to the Committee via email or a USB disk.
After the Committee receives an initial Application Record, it reviews the Application for completeness, and conducts the appropriate conflicts searches and contacts applicants for the purposes of scheduling a hearing date. The Committee endeavors to schedule hearings at the next available hearing date.
Hearings are held at the Committee’s offices, in the absence of the public. These hearings are typically held in the evening. Plaintiff counsel is asked to attend and provide brief oral submissions which do not exceed 20 minutes. The representative plaintiff is not required to attend but may attend if he or she wishes. After these submissions, the Committee may ask questions regarding the case after which it retires to consider the matter. After it has made its decision, the Committee provides written notification of its decision to the applicant.
