Important Court Decisions

Morganti & Co. is one of the leading law firms across Canada that litigate investors’ claims; having argued as lead or co-counsel numerous contested leave to proceed motions raising unique legal issues important for the promotion of shareholders’ rights, honoured with several of our securities’ decisions being published by the Ontario Reporters (“O.R.s”), and our lawyers have tried cases, including securities fraud claims.

Annual 2021

• Gowanlock v. Auxly Cannabis Group, Inc., 2021 ONSC 4205 Leave to proceed granted recognizing that, “The court, on the other hand, comes to the event in retrospect, after the market impact (or lack thereof) has taken place. In the circumstances, the task at hand is to determine whether the alleged public correction was understood in the market as a correction. At this point, the market impact can be objectively determined by an examination of the stock’s subsequent price movements, and the market, reflecting economically rational investor behaviour, becomes the determinant of what the reasonable investor might think.”

Annual 2020

• Gauthier v. David Baazov (Amaya, Inc), 2020 QCCS 2452
  Alleged manipulating shares with false statements to take company private granted leave to proceed/authorization and Quebec court adopting Sharbern Holdings Inc (SCC) as the proper test to assess when fact becomes a material fact for satisfying the statutory claim.
• Miller v. FSD Pharma Inc., 2020 ONSC 4054
  Leave to proceed granted recognizing that final public corrective disclosure came from a formerly retained third-party company to oversee engineering project; also the first known case across Canada to conduct the s. 138.8 of the Ontario Securities Act submissions over video-conference.
• LBP Holdings v. Hycroft Mining Corporation, et al, 2020 ONSC 59
  Division Court affirms that stand alone common law negligent misrepresentation claims can advance forward against investment banks that released certifications annexed to a prospectus containing alleged misrepresentations, the element of reliance can be dealt with through individual trials of each class member, and class actions do, in fact, provide access to justice to investors, including family offices and institutional investors.

Annual 2019

• Kauf v. Colt Resources Inc., 135 O.R. (3d) 100
  Leave to proceed granted recognizing that an announcement of a C-level executive without anything more can serve as a partial public correction when company omits to disclose the reason for the resignation was because person engaged in improper conduct; also adopts the Sharbern Holdings Inc (SCC) as the proper test to assess when fact becomes a material fact for satisfying the statutory claim and Companies can be liable for storm warnings, e.g., not disclosing all the bad news in one disclosure.
• Stevens v. Ithaca Energy Inc., 2019 ABQB 474
  First known Alberta court to adopt Sharbern Holdings Inc (SCC) as the proper test to assess when fact becomes a material fact for satisfying the statutory claim and granting leave to proceed with the statutory shareholder claim.

Annual 2018

• Paniccia v. MDC Partners Inc., 2017 ONSC 7298
  Affirms that the Ontario Securities Act can reach shares traded on foreign stock exchanges and that Canadian investors are not limited to watch a foreign class action, which they are members, but can also advance a claim in Ontario pursuant to Ontario laws: when there is jurisdiction simpliciter, Ontario courts does not automatically stop being interested in regulating trading of securities on foreign stock exchanges.

Annual 2017

• Wong v. Pretium Resources Inc., 139 O.R. (3d) 353
  First known Ontario court to adopt Sharbern Holdings Inc (SCC) as the proper test to assess when fact becomes a material fact for satisfying the statutory claim and granting leave to proceed with the statutory shareholder claim, which the Division Court denied the Defendants’ motion to appeal.
• Catucci v. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., 2017 QCCS 3870
  First known Quebec court to granting leave to proceed/authorization with the statutory shareholder claim.

Annual 2016

• Kaynes v. BP plc, 133 O.R. (3d) 29
  Court of Appeal lifted a stay of proceedings relating to shares purchased on foreign stock exchange when foreign class action claim was dismissed.
• LBP Holdings Ltd v. Allied Nevada Gold Inc., 130 O.R. (3d) 401
  Successfully adding underwriters to claim after corporate defendant filed for bankruptcy.

Annual 2014

• Kaynes v. BP plc, 122 O.R. (3d) 162
  Court of Appeal affirms that once the Ontario Securities Act applies to a Canadian investor, it applies to shares traded on foreign stock exchanges.

Annual 2013

• Kaynes v. BP plc, 2013 ONSC 5802
  Ontario Court agrees with Ontario investors that the Ontario Securities Act can apply against foreign corporations with shares traded on foreign stock exchanges once jurisdiction simpliciter is established.