Justice Janet Leiper of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice made the ruling on Tuesday, November 3, 2026. The decision was announced the next day by Rochon Genova, the Toronto law firm representing the plaintiffs, and reported by The Canadian Press.

What the court decided

According to the plaintiffs’ release, Justice Leiper did two things. She granted leave under Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act, the part that lets investors sue over misleading statements by public companies, and she certified the case as a misrepresentation class action.

Investors suing under this part of the Act need the court’s permission, called leave, before the case can go ahead. In granting it, the release says, Justice Leiper found the plaintiffs have a reasonable chance of proving the statutory misrepresentation claims at trial. She also certified a common issue on aggregate damages, meaning the court may later be asked to set damages for the class as a whole.

“Investors were not told that the Bank was deliberately courting legal risk by starving its AML program to deliver favourable returns. TD communicated about a risk management approach that was contradicted by the facts it agreed to with the DOJ.”

Justice Janet Leiper, as quoted in the plaintiffs’ release

Who is being sued

The defendants are The Toronto-Dominion Bank and seven members of its senior leadership, past or present: Bharat B. Masrani, Leovigildo Salom, Kelvin Vi Luan Tran, Alan N. MacGibbon, Mary A. Winston, Brian M. Levitt and Michael Bowman. The Canadian Press describes Masrani as TD’s former CEO.

The plaintiffs are not named in the release. They are represented by Joel P. Rochon, Peter R. Jervis, Douglas Worndl, Golnaz Nayerahmadi, Sarah J. Fiddes and Pritpal Mann of Rochon Genova.

What the lawsuit alleges

These are claims made by the plaintiffs. None of them has been tested at trial.

• The period. The action alleges misrepresentations made from December 1, 2021 to October 10, 2024.
• The claim. It alleges the defendants concealed what it calls “longstanding, pervasive and systemic deficiencies” in TD’s anti-money laundering controls, and a decision to put profits ahead of regulatory compliance.
• Where the statements appeared. It alleges misrepresentations about those deficiencies and about related investigations and prosecutions, including in TD’s financial reporting.
• The losses. It alleges TD’s market capitalization fell by CA$30 billion once the truth reached the market, causing significant investor losses.

The release does not state a dollar amount of damages claimed, and it does not set out the exact definition of who belongs to the class.

The background: penalties in the U.S. and Canada

The release says TD’s anti-money laundering failures led its U.S. subsidiaries to become the first banks in U.S. history to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. It says U.S. authorities imposed more than US$3 billion in penalties and an indefinite cap on the growth of TD’s U.S. retail and commercial banking business.

In Canada, the federal financial intelligence agency also acted. FINTRAC says it imposed an administrative monetary penalty of $9,185,000 on The Toronto-Dominion Bank on April 9, 2024, for failures that included not submitting suspicious transaction reports and not conducting ongoing monitoring of business relationships. FINTRAC said the penalty was for administrative violations, not criminal money laundering offences, and that TD paid it in full.

Dates from the Rochon Genova release of November 4, 2026 and FINTRAC’s notice of May 2, 2024.

What the plaintiffs’ lawyer said

“This is an important step in holding TD accountable to the very investors that have entrusted it with their savings and investments.”

Joel Rochon, managing partner, Rochon Genova

The release states that the defendants deny the plaintiffs’ allegations. Gizly did not find a separate statement from TD in the materials reviewed for this story.

What it means for you

• If you owned TD shares between December 2021 and October 2024: the release says class members do not need to take any action at this time. Check the Rochon Genova TD AML case page for updates on who is in the class and any notice to class members.
• If you bank with TD: this is a securities case about what TD told investors. The materials Gizly reviewed do not describe any claim about customer accounts.
• If you invest in Canadian bank stocks: certification is an early stage. Class actions can take years, and they can end in a trial, a settlement or a dismissal.

For more on Canada’s push against money laundering, see our story on Bill S-8 and the proposed $10,000 cash limit. If you are new to owning stocks, our guide on how to start investing in Canada covers the basics.

Frequently asked questions

• Sources, checked November 5, 2026: Rochon Genova via PR Newswire: Ontario Court Grants Leave and Certifies Money Laundering Misrepresentation Class Action Against The Toronto-Dominion Bank (November 4, 2026); CTV News / The Canadian Press: Ontario court certifies class-action suit against TD Bank regarding money laundering (November 4, 2026); FINTRAC: administrative monetary penalty on The Toronto-Dominion Bank (May 2, 2024); Rochon Genova: TD AML case page.
• Method: Details of the ruling, the allegations and the quotes come from the plaintiffs’ counsel release, checked against The Canadian Press report. Gizly has not seen the court’s written reasons. Allegations are reported as claims, not facts. We will update this story if TD comments or the court issues notice to class members.

Important: This story is general information, not legal, investment or financial advice. The allegations in this lawsuit have not been proven in court. Gizly is not paid by any company or law firm mentioned here. See our affiliate disclosure.