Written by David Sterns on April 13, 2025

LITIGATORS—and anyone who cares about access to justice:

Ontario’s proposed civil justice reforms won’t just eliminate oral discovery—they will gut documentary discovery as we know it. In the name of “efficiency,” the rules would replace meaningful disclosure with a cursory document exchange, followed by a “pin the tail on the donkey” regime where plaintiffs must guess which documents to request—without knowing if they exist. And unless your request is highly specific, it will be denied.

Imagine trying to prove a fraud, conspiracy, abuse, or product liability case under those conditions. Serious med-mal case? Good luck with that!

The irony? This is happening at the very moment AI tools have made large-scale document production and review faster, cheaper, and more accessible than ever. We’re at the dawn of a revolution that could finally level the playing field between powerful institutions and vulnerable plaintiffs—and instead, they’re recommending severely curtailing discovery.

So who benefits from eliminating document discovery? Certainly not the victims of financial fraud, institutional abuse, defective products, or systemic misconduct.

If you work with vulnerable clients or in complex litigation, now is the time to engage. The consultation is open until June 16, 2025. We are preparing access-to-justice–focused submissions and welcome others to contribute.

Let’s make sure well-intentioned reform doesn’t put justice even further out of reach.

Reach out to me at dsterns@sotos.ca if you’d like to get involved.