The applicant brought a motion for directions regarding whether a prior court order required the commencement of a fresh action with new pleadings, productions, and examinations for discovery in a dispute concerning the calculation of gross rentable area under a commercial lease.
The respondent opposed the need for a new action and sought to proceed directly to trial on an expedited basis.
The court found that the dispute centered on expert methodology rather than the parties’ intentions or lease validity, and that the lease contained a mechanism for determining gross rentable area.
The court also noted prejudice to the property owner caused by ongoing litigation preventing the sale of the building.
Directions were issued converting the matter into an action proceeding to expedited trial and treating prior application evidence as partial discovery.
