Securing Canadian recognition of 23andMe’s U.S. Chapter 11, staying privacy class actions

In 2025, 23andMe Holdings, Inc. ("23andMe"), a pioneer in consumer DNA testing, faced a major legal crisis stemming from a 2023 cybersecurity breach that exposed the personal data of nearly 7 million customers. The breach sparked dozens of lawsuits worldwide (including multiple proposed privacy class actions in Canada) and intense regulatory scrutiny. In response, 23andMe filed for Chapter 11 protection in the U.S. in March 2025 as a means to address its liabilities and restructure via a court-supervised asset sale. To prevent parallel proceedings from undermining the reorganization, the company sought recognition of the U.S. bankruptcy in Canada under the Cross-Border Insolvency provisions of the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act ("CCAA").

On May 26, 2025, the Supreme Court of British Columbia recognized 23andMe’s Chapter 11 case as a foreign main proceeding, thereby staying all legal actions against the company in Canada, including the ongoing data-breach class actions, and giving full effect to the U.S. court’s orders across Canada. We acted as Canadian counsel to 23andMe’s court-appointed foreign representative, spearheading the cross-border strategy and recognition. We assisted in navigating novel issues at the intersection of insolvency and privacy law. Our team obtained the BC Supreme Court recognition order on behalf of 23andMe and then successfully defended it on appeal. In an expedited proceeding, the British Columbia Court of Appeal quashed the class representative’s appeal. 

McCarthy Tétrault assisted 23andMe with a team led by Lance Williams that included Ashley Bowron (Bankruptcy and Restructuring), Nico Rullmann and Katherine Griffin (Litigation).