Class Action: How Are Members Notified?

Class members are advised on major developments in a class action through notices to members, particularly when a class action is authorized, when the parties reach a settlement agreement and when the class action is won in court.

Notices to members are essential to ensuring that you’re informed of class actions that concern you. This notice provides you with information on your rights and the steps that you must take, such as submitting a claim form to obtain compensation. You can find these notices on various platforms, such as the websites of the lawyers in charge of the case, social media, newspapers or even on YouTube.

In some cases, you may receive a message even if you didn’t register for a class action or sign up for a newsletter. This is because companies being sued (the “defendants”) can sometimes identify the individuals involved in a class action in their files. Following a court order, the defendants can use the contact details of these persons or provide them to an administrator so that they can be informed of their rights.

As an claims or notice administrator, Proactio communicates notices to members for a large number of files. They may also notify you by email or text message!

If you receive a letter, email or text message indicating that you could be part of a class action and you fear that it’s a phishing attempt, read our article that contains tips on how to identify possible fraud.

Every class action has its own notice campaign and the methods of disseminating these notices vary.

Below is a list of the commonly used communication methods to inform the public regarding the authorization of a class action or the beginning of a claims process:

Publication on the class counsel’s website: Class action news, including notices to members, can almost always be found on Class counsel’s websites.

Email: You may receive an email if you registered on class counsel’s website. However, this registration is not the same as a claim. For further information, please refer to our article entitled Registration or claim: how to tell them apart?

You may also receive an email because you have been a user or client of the defendants (class action against Facebook or Ticketmaster, for example). In this case, the Court will have authorized the use of your personal information and sending the notice.

Text message: You may receive a text message to notify you of a news in a class action (if the defendant had your contact details, for example). In this case, the Court will have authorized the use of your personal information and sending the notice.

Letter: You may receive a letter addressed to you or to an individual residing at a specific address. For example, as part of the class action following the floods in Rosemont, such letters were sent to addresses within the perimeter in question. In this case, letters were addressed to the residents.

Advertising on Facebook and Instagram: Advertisements for member notices on social media are becoming increasingly common. They are now widely accepted and encouraged by the courts

Digital advertising banners on certain websites (the Ricardo website, for example).

YouTube: You may have already seen advertisements at the beginning or during videos on the YouTube website. Some of these ads could be for a class action that affects you, so stay alert!

Print or online newspapers: Notices may be found in the newspapers. You must check both the general advertisements and legal notices sections.

Posters and bulletin boards: When class action members live in the same region or visit the same locations, posters and bulletin boards can be very useful for informing members of their rights. You may even see posters for certain class actions in bus shelters and metro stations.

Notices to members sent by a related organization: For example, as part of the class action regarding illegal strip searches at Rivière-des-Prairies and Bordeaux detention centres, notices to members were sent to all transition homes across the province.

Radio broadcast (local or provincial): As part of the class action regarding illegal strip searches at Rivière-des-Prairies and Bordeaux detention centres, advertisements were broadcast on local radio stations in Montréal.

LinkedIn: In relation to a class action involving shareholders of a corporation, a notice campaign may be carried out on LinkedIn.

Quebec’s Registry of class actions. Quebec law requires that notices to members are made available on this registry which is under the responsibility of the Superior Court of Quebec. The registry contains information and documentation regarding all class actions instituted in Quebec. To access this registry, click here.

To find out more about accessing the registry, read our article which contains tips on how to identify possible fraud.