Microsoft Xbox 360 National Class Actions
Please note that on February 18, 2011, the Superior Court of Québec (the Honorable Justice Louis Lacoursière) granted our client’s “Motion Seeking Authorization to Discontinue Class Action Proceedings”, regarding the proceedings he had previously filed concerning the Microsoft XBOX 360 gaming consoles.
The following is a link to the Judgment rendered in French by the Superior Court of Québec ( French Judgment)
The following is our firm’s in-house (and therefore non-official) English translation of the Judgment in question:
JUDGMENT
CONSIDERING the proceedings instituted in 2005 and 2007 by the Petitioner;
CONSIDERING the proceedings institute the said proceedings for the following reasons:
“4. At this stage in the proceedings, and considering the significant amount of time and costs associated with the many future steps required to reach a conclusion on the merits in both of the above-mentioned cases, the Petitioner has come to the conclusion that the pursuit of the present recourses is not longer in his interest;
5. That being said, Petitioner respectfully submits that the granting of the present motion seeking leave to discontinue said proceedings will not affect the interests of potential class members since prescription had been suspended when the matters were initiated by Petitioner;”
CONSIDERING that the class actions were never authorized;
CONSIDERING the order of Mr. Justice Martin Castonguay asking the Petitioner’s counsel to inform putative class members who had registered on Merchant Law Group’s website that the Petitioner was seeking to discontinue proceedings;
CONSIDERING that Merchant Law Group was to inform the putative class members that they were required to confirm their intention to be present at the hearing of the Motion for Leave to Discontinue by no later than January 20, 2011;
CONSIDERING that Petitioner’s counsel complied with the order and only three responses from putative class members were received before January 20, 2011, none of which indicating an intention to attend the hearing;
CONSIDERING that under the present circumstances, the Court finds that there is no reason to believe that putative class members would be deprived of any rights;
CONSIDERING that under the present circumstances, it would be contrary to the interests of justice and the rules of proportionality to order publication of another notice;
FOR THESE REASONS, THE COURT:
GRANTS the Motion [Seeking Authorization to Discontinue Class Action Proceedings] in accordance with its conclusions;
ORDERS the attorneys for the Petitioner to post a copy of the present Judgment on their Website;
WITHOUT COSTS.
(signed)
__________________________________
Hon. Louis Lacoursière, j.c.s.”
Merchant Law Group LLP has 12 offices across Canada, with lawyers practising law in six provinces and an American state. Tony Merchant, Q.C., and his firm are well known for pursuing class action lawsuits in Canada including litigation regarding Complete Contact Lens Solution,Winners/HomeSense, Various Cellular Phone Fees, BCE Dividends, GM Gasket Manifolds, Hip Implants, Lead Paint in Toys (and similar consumer products), Maple Leaf, Celebrex/Bextra, Vioxx, Sony, Residential Schools, Zonolite and various other cases. Tony Merchant is known to be one of Canada's most active litigators with more than 600 reported cases in leading Caselaw Journals, having argued thousands of cases before the Canadian and American Courts, in Trial and Administrative Courts, and the Courts of Appeal of various American and Canadian jurisdictions, the Federal Court of Canada, and the Supreme Court of Canada. Tony Merchant, Q.C., has a long history in pursuing public policy cases and is a former Member of the Legislative Assembly (M.L.A.)