Case information

Torts — Privacy — Civil procedure — Application to certify class proceeding — If a person’s data is obtained by criminal hacking into a data custodian’s data base, may that custodian be liable for wilful violation of privacy — What is the meaning of wilfully — Whether wilful violation of privacy turns on reasonable expectations of person asserting privacy interest — Whether tort applies to any conduct that has effect of violating privacy even if unintended — In determining whether a claim based on a statute is bound to fail, should a court resolve issues of statutory interpretation or decline to do so unless an appellate court has definitively settled the interpretive issue?

Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.

Third party hackers gained access to South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority’s network drives and accessed personal information of employees, retired employees, spouses and beneficiaries, and some customers. Former employees commenced an action for damages including claims for breach of a duty to safeguard their personal data arising under the Privacy Act R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 165, and in negligence. The Supreme Court of British Columbia dismissed an application to certify the action as a class proceeding. The Court of Appeal allowed an appeal and remitted the certification application for reconsideration.