Are you interested in Canada’s definition of conspiracy law? Maybe you are a law student getting ready for a torts exam. Or perhaps you have been sued for conspiracy? This article explains what you need to know about lawsuits and torts. For other helpful articles, see our litigation series.

Conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to commit a criminal offence. The parties involved must intend to enter into this agreement and achieve its criminal objective.

Legal Interpretation of Conspiracy in Canada

When someone files a lawsuit for conspiracy, it must be properly pled. The plaintiff must establish three things:

• There was some agreement between two or more parties (people, organizations, etc.)
• That action was taken to cause damage to the person filing the lawsuit or action was taken that violates the law
• The plaintiff suffered actual damages

Unlawful action that causes damages means conspiracy. When I mentioned an agreement, don’t think of a contract. Instead, the deal means the people being sued worked together (in agreement) to cause illegal action and damages.

Some torts don’t require damage actually to occur. For example, the tort of Assault only requires the defendant to mean to cause harmful contact. In the Tort of Conspiracy, however, actual damages must be shown.

Civil conspiracy complaint

The conspiracy definition in Canada might seem simple, but the area of law is still developing. It might be pled that the defendants knew or ought to have known that injury to the plaintiff was likely, and such injury did occur. It might also be pled that the goal was to injure the plaintiff and benefit themselves, regardless of whether the means used by them were lawful.

If the two or more parties didn’t act together, then it can’t be a conspiracy. The plaintiff must make it clear if the actions were illegal or not. The tort of a conspiracy needs to be distinguished from a criminal act.

Definition of Conspiracy in Canada

Some people filing a lawsuit confuse the tort of conspiracy with the tort of assault or battery. Sometimes, it’s confused with the criminal act of assault, theft, or fraud. You need to “merge” your Torts and pick the most likely to succeed. Don’t just plead a bunch of torts to see what works.

A lawsuit for civil conspiracy often arises in fraud cases. People not involved in the original business deal or investment can be sued if they helped with the wrongdoing. An example of a Tort is three people getting together to defraud a bank. One person applies for the loan and the other two work at a separate bank in Italy.

Once the Canadian bank, say TD Bank, makes the person a $1M loan, the person who received the money transfers the money to the bank in Italy. The money is gone when TD Bank sues the person for defaulting on the loan. It’s safe in Italy. TD Bank might hire a law firm in Italy to pursue all three people involved in the conspiracy to defraud the bank.

This of course assumes that Italy has the same conspiracy laws as Canada, otherwise the lawsuit would have to be filed in Canada. If you are a law student, check out our law school series. If you need a lawyer, contact us. Learn other legal definitions.