Canada will see its first class action lawsuit based on the new tort of invading another’s privacy, after a Bank of Nova Scotia employee leaked customers’ personal information to his girlfriend for personal gain. At least 138 customers were subsequently defrauded. Ontario’s Superior Court accepted that the employer was vicariously liable for the employee’s actions and certified the class of 643 customers whose files the employee had accessed and potentially leaked.

Intrusion upon seclusion

Intruding upon a person’s seclusion means intentionally or recklessly invading her or his private affairs without justification, causing the person distress, humiliation or anguish. This tort of intrusion upon seclusion is only a recent creation. In 2012:

The Ontario Court of Appeal reversed an established principle that there is no such thing as a tort of invasion of privacy… the Court decided that it was now appropriate to confirm the existence of a tort of invasion