Advancing Access to Justice Through Cy Pres Distributions

Access to justice is the principal objective of Ontario's Class Proceedings Act. It is a goal that can and should be advanced by class action settlements that provide cy près distributions to legal aid organizations. Derived from the Norman French phrase cy près comme possible, the "as near as possible" doctrine first arose in the context of charitable trusts. When the original intention of the testator could not be achieved, the next best thing was done in order to preserve the trust. Published in the Winter 2010 (Vol. 21, No.2) edition of The Advocates' E-Brief, an electronic publication of the Advocates' Society.