02/02/2026
Notice of Proposed Settlement and Settlement Approval Hearing
Your legal rights may be affected.
Did you receive notice or have reason to believe that you may have experienced a privacy breach between March 1, 2020 and December 31, 2020 with respect to your personal or financial information while using a Government of Canada Online Account (Canada Revenue Agency’s “My Account”, “My Services Canada” account, or other online government accounts where the account is accessed using a GCKey)?
Why did I get this Notice?
All persons whose personal or financial information in their Government of Canada Online Account was disclosed to a third party without authorization between March 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020 (the “Data Breach”) have the right to know about a proposed settlement that has been reached in Sweet v. His Majesty the King, Federal Court File No. T-980-20 (“Sweet Class Action”).
“Government of Canada Online Account” means:
Canada Revenue Agency account;
My Service Canada account; or
another Government of Canada online account, where that account is accessed using the Government of Canada Branded Credential Service (GCKey).
On August 25, 2022, the Federal Court certified the Sweet Class Action.
Obtain a copy of the Court’s order on the Sweet Class Action.
The proposed settlement of the Class Action must be approved by the Court to become legally binding. The proposed settlement is a compromise of disputed claims and is not an admission of liability or wrongdoing or fault by any of the Defendants.
A hearing to determine if the proposed settlement is fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the Class Members (“Approval Hearing”) is scheduled to take place on March 31, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. PT at the Federal Court in Vancouver, BC, and by videoconference via Teams. At the Approval Hearing, the Court will also determine whether the fees and disbursements sought by class counsel and the honoraria payments proposed for the current and former representative plaintiffs (discussed below under the heading, “What are the legal fee arrangements?”) are fair and reasonable.
The Plaintiff who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the Class Members is Todd Sweet (called the “Representative Plaintiff”).
The lawyers for the Class are Rice Harbut Elliott LLP (“Class Counsel”).
What is the Class Action about?
Among other things, the Plaintiff alleges that the Government of Canada breached class members’ privacy by not properly safeguarding confidential personal and financial information accessed electronically using various online government portals. The Plaintiff alleges that these inadequate safeguards allowed bad actors to access the online accounts of Canadians absent their consent, view confidential and private details and, in some cases, apply for CERB benefits. The Government of Canada denies that it did anything wrong.
The Plaintiff is asking the Court to approve the proposed settlement agreement reached between the parties.
Who are the Class Members affected by the proposed settlement?
The Class consists of:
All persons whose personal or financial information in their Government of Canada Online Account was disclosed to a third party without authorization between March 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020, including Excluded Persons.
“Government of Canada Online Account” means:
Canada Revenue Agency account;
My Service Canada account; or
another Government of Canada online account, where that account is accessed using the Government of Canada Branded Credential Service (GCKey).
“Excluded Persons” means all persons who contacted Murphy Battista LLP about the CRA privacy breach class action, with Federal Court file number T-982-20 prior to June 24, 2021.
If you meet the definition above, you are a Class Member. For greater clarity, even if you meet the definition of “Excluded Persons” in the definition above, you are a Class Member and your rights are affected by the proposed settlement.
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