Just a decade ago, China’s rise as an economic superpower still seemed uncertain. Back then, the China practice of major international firms was still mainly the province of the Old China Hands — lawyers who perhaps had a deeper affinity for Chinese language and culture than the practice of law — who focused on representing foreign companies opening factories and shops in China.

A pair of groundbreaking rulings issued Monday by an Ontario judge in a securities class action has suddenly made the province a much more attractive jurisdiction for plaintiffs pursuing global securities litigation. The case, filed against IMAX Corp. and several individual defendants in Toronto in the fall of 2006, is considered a litmus test for a new securities law creating U.S.-style civil liability in Canada for misrepresentations that affect stock market values.