Update – January 12th, 2018:

On January 10th, 2018, Joshua Elliott Temple commenced a proposed class action in the Supreme Court of British Columbia against Equifax, Inc. and Equifax Canada Co (“Equifax”) alleging Equifax consumers had suffered damages as a result of the access to and theft of consumers Personal Information.  Mr. Temple is represented by Branch MacMaster LLP and Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman LLP.

Proposed Class

This action is brought on behalf of members of a proposed class consisting of Joshua Elliott Temple, the representative plaintiff, and all persons residing in B.C. whose Personal Information was contained on electronic databases in the control of Equifax and which was compromised and/or accessed by others during the period March 8th, 2017 and July 31st, 2017. This action is also brought on behalf of a subclass of persons who purchased security monitoring services from Equifax (the “Credit Monitoring Services Subclass”), defined as “all Class Members who at any time between March 8th, 2017 and July 31st, 2017 were subscribers to one of Equifax’s Credit Monitoring Services”. If you fit in this criteria, you may be eligible to participate in this proposed class action after it is certified (i.e. the Court confirms it may proceed as a class action). There is no date set yet for certification.

The Claim

The claim alleges that Equifax failed to adequately safeguard the personal information of the Plaintiff and other proposed Class Members. It also alleges that once Equifax became aware of the security breach, that it failed to promptly notify the Plaintiff and other Class Members, and further, that it misrepresented to the Credit Monitoring Services Subclass that there had been no critical events.

Individuals whose information was held on Equifax’s database during the period noted-above may be entitled to compensation for the breach of their privacy, damages for identity theft and/or damages to their credit reputation, damages for the costs incurred to prevent identity theft, damages for the time spent changing your personal information, damages for emotional distress/inconvenience, and/or compensation for out of pocket expenses.

A filed copy of the Notice of Civil Claim can be found here. We will continue to update this website as developments occur.

The Lawyers

Branch MacMaster LLP,
the lawyers responsible for this file are: Luciana P. Brasil & Trevor Siemens

Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman LLP,
the lawyer responsible for this file is: David G. A Jones

What Happens Next?

The first substantial step in a proposed class action is for the Court to consider whether the action can proceed as a class action, and define the class and the common issues to be determined on behalf of the class. This process is called “certification”. If the action is certified, all persons who fit the class definition will be automatically included in the class, but will have an opportunity to opt out (exclude themselves) from the proceeding. This process typically includes a notice effort.

If you would like to be added to our database of known potential claimants so you can be updated on the progress of this proposed class action and receive direct notification of certification or other substantial steps, please contact:

Branch MacMaster LLP
Barristers & Solicitors
Suite 1410 – 777 Hornby Street
Vancouver, BC V6C 1S4
Email: info@branmac.com 
Telephone: 604 654 2955
Fax: 604 684 3429

Please note that registration with us does not mean you are a part of the class action; that determination is made by the Court in the certification process, and what you have is an opportunity to exclude yourself if and when the action is certified.  However, registration ensures you receive notice of certification and of the opportunity to exercise your right to opt out or to continue to participate in the action.

Important Note

This website has been developed to provide general information to potential class members on proposed class actions. This website will be updated from time to time to provide potential class members with information as it becomes available.

The site is not designed to answer questions about your individual situation or entitlement. Do not rely upon the information provided on this website as legal advice in respect of your individual situation nor use it as a substitute for individual legal advice.

To the extent that we may ask you for further information, the information collected will assist our lawyers in prosecuting the class action and assessing what damages were suffered by the class as a whole. Providing the information requested does not make you the client of Branch MacMaster and does not officially make you a member of the class. As noted above, the Court will ultimately decide who will be included as a class member, and if you are included, you may have an opportunity to exclude yourself from the class.