Assuming Jurisdiction Over A Claim

Lapointe Rosenstein Marchand Melançon LLP v. Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP, 2016 SCC 30:

Before a court can assume jurisdiction over a claim, a real and substantial connection must be shown between the circumstances giving rise to the claim and the jurisdiction where the claim is brought. This Court’s decision in Club Resorts Ltd. v. Van Breda, 2012 SCC 17, [2012] 1 S.C.R. 572, sets out the test for establishing the requisite connection in tort claims, and identified four presumptive connecting factors. All presumptive connecting factors generally point to a relationship between the subject matter of the litigation and the forum where jurisdiction is proposed to be assumed. Relevant considerations include:

(a)          Similarity of the connecting factor with the recognized presumptive connecting factors;

(b)          Treatment of the connecting factor in the case law;

(c)          Treatment of the connecting factor in statute law; and

(d)          Treatment of the connecting factor in the private international law of other legal systems with a shared commitment to order, fairness and comity.