After a decade of private health information breaches, three law firms are slapping the Government of the Northwest Territories with a lawsuit.
The representative action, which is similar to a class action suit, follows the theft of a laptop containing 80 per cent of NWT residents’ private health records in Ontario. The action will also draw on the confidential files recently discovered at Fort Simpson dump, among other breaches.
“If your information was on that disk or any of the other breaches, if the (representative) action is certified, you’re part of it, whether you like it or not, whether you know about it or not,” said lawyer Stephen Cooper about the wide-ranging case.
Individuals, however, may opt-out of a final decision or settlement, he added.
The action applies to tens of thousands of people, including visitors and former residents.
“This will extend well beyond the Northwest Territories," Cooper said. "If you’re a Japanese tourist who went to see a doctor, or was hospitalized for example, we expected your records were on there.”
The territorial government hasn’t been notified of a claim and will not comment at the present time, Damien Healy, spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Services told Yellowknifer.
The firms involved -- James H. Brown & Associates, Guardian Law and Cooper’s firm, Cooper Legal -- pooled their efforts early on upon learning they were working on similar cases.
In terms of precedent, Cooper added that Clint Docken of Guardian Law has previously been involved with a similar settlement for roughly 617,000 people in Alberta. He said another case providing a “roadmap” for the firms is a $1 million settlement with Bell Mobility, where the company billed northern customers for 911 service that didn’t exist.
However, precedent in the territories is “few and far between,” he said, explaining that “it’s a path not well-trodden.”
“We’ll be figuring things out the hard way in some cases,” he said.
In the suit, damages could total $10 million for the potentially 60,000 people involved, Cooper said.
However, it’s unlikely there will be substantial individual compensation.
“This is more about what the government has done or not done, than it is about payouts at the end to individuals," he said.
“Governments and institutions and large companies need to understand that they cannot act with impunity when they’re doing something that has a very small impact on a whole large group of people.”
In addition to one plaintiff from Fort Simpson, 20 to 30 other people have potential claims, but Cooper expects more following media reports.
“We’re going to get lots of phone calls and we have already,” he said.
More individuals becoming involved with the case will help the firm create a database, and collect information and personal experience. More direct involvement will also include updates from the firm on the action’s progress.
Cooper said the overall aim is change to the GNWT's behaviour when it comes to privacy issues.
“It’s going to hopefully have the intended impact, which is to make them wake up and start protecting this information," he said. "This is happening time and again. The public embarrassment, and whatever steps they’re taking to try to solve the problem, it’s just not working.”