High Court won’t hear appeal of Money Mart attempt to derail class action suit

OTTAWA – The Supreme Court of Canada won’t hear an appeal in a case where Money Mart sought to derail a class-action suit over payday loans.

Two Calgary men, Gareth Young and H. Craig Day, are representative plaintiffs in the class action, which argues that the lender’s fees for short-term loans are unlawful.

The lender argued that the two men had signed an agreement that they would use arbitration in the event of a dispute and that they would not take part in a class action.

The Alberta courts ruled that provincial law allows the men to sue.

The lower courts said the arbitration clauses are only effective if they are formally approved by the provincial government.

Money Mart applied for that approval twice, but was turned down.