On September 18, 2024, the Quebec Court of Appeal upheld the first instance judgment of September 22, 2022, authorizing the class action initiated in 2019 against Apple and Samsung. This action concerns allegations of failures to inform users and potential health risks related to their mobile phones. This decision poses a real financial and reputational risk for both manufacturers!
Key points of the decision
- Rejection of Apple and Samsung‘s appeals requesting complete dismissal of the action
- Rejection of the plaintiffs’ incidental appeal seeking to expand the scope of the action
- Upholding of the initial judgment that had reduced the extent of the class action
A class action related to the Phonegate scandal
The action, initiated in 2019 by Attorney Charles O’Brien on behalf of the plaintiffs, seeks damages related to the alleged health risks to users of their mobile phones, claiming that the two manufacturers did not properly disclose these risks.
This case is part of the broader “Phonegate” scandal, an international industrial and health scandal revealed in 2016 in France concerning the exceeding of electromagnetic wave exposure standards by many mobile phones. This scandal has already led to the withdrawal from the French market or the updating of 54 smartphone models between 2018 and today, including the iPhone 12 in 2023.
The class action in Canada follows an investigation conducted in August 2019 by Sam Roe, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist at the Chicago Tribune. This investigation revealed that several smartphone models, including the iPhone 7, exceeded radiofrequency exposure limits during independent tests. Following the Chicago Tribune investigation, a class action lawsuit was filed against Apple in the United States in the case of Cohen v. Apple Inc.
Estimation of financial and reputational stakes
Although the exact extent of damages remains to be established, the financial impact of this class action could be significant. Apple holds a strong position in the Canadian smartphone market, and with a Quebec population of about 8.5 million inhabitants, several million iPhone users could be affected.
The plaintiffs had initially requested 13,000 Canadian dollars per year per group member, but this compensation claim was largely challenged by the court in the first instance. Even if the scope of the action has possibly been reduced, the financial stakes for Apple and Samsung could remain considerable depending on the final number of group members, the evidence of harm that will be presented, and potential other induced actions both in Canada and North America.
The validation of this class action will certainly also affect Apple and Samsung‘s reputation in terms of product safety and transparency towards consumers, especially in a context of growing sensitivity to health issues related to these technologies.
For Dr. Marc Arazi (France), who chairs the NGO Phonegate Alert and who launched the alert in 2016:
“We will closely follow the development of this first authorized class action against Apple and Samsung in Canada. Its implications for the evolution of the scandal in North America and the rest of the world could have considerable resonance. We call on Canadian and international public authorities to take these legal developments into account without delay in assessing the risks associated with mobile phones.”
To learn more:
• Full decision of the Quebec Court of Appeal in cases 500-09-030262-224 (Samsung Electronics Canada et al. v. Tracey Arial et al.) & 500-09-030263-222 (Apple Canada inc. et al. v. Tracey Arial et al.)
• First instance decision in the class action against Apple and Samsung
• File on the case of Cohen v. Apple Inc. in the United States
