Charles Gibson

The applicant, a judgment creditor owed over $1.5 million by the respondent dentist, brought an application alleging that the respondent and others conspired to fraudulently convey his interest in several dental practices to a third-party corporation.

The applicant sought damages and a declaration that the sale was a conspiracy by unlawful means.

The court dismissed the application, finding that the sale was initiated by an arm's-length purchaser prior to the judgment, the consideration was consistent with standard industry practices, and there was no intent to defeat, hinder, delay, or defraud the applicant.

The plaintiff, a distributor of lighting retrofit kits, sued the defendant local distribution company for over $20 million in damages after its business failed.

The plaintiff alleged that the defendant negligently delayed and suspended approvals for customer rebates under a provincial energy conservation program, raising unfounded safety concerns.

The court dismissed the action, finding that the defendant owed no duty of care to the plaintiff, as the rebate program was exclusively for the benefit of customers.

Furthermore, the court found that the defendant's safety concerns were legitimate, the processing times were not unreasonable, and the plaintiff's financial collapse was caused by internal disputes, loss of inventory, and withdrawal of bank financing rather than the defendant's actions.

Claims for breach of contract, tortious interference, and misfeasance in public office were also dismissed.

Following a successful motion for a disclosure order against the defendants in the context of a judgment debtor examination, the plaintiff sought costs on a substantial indemnity basis.

The court found that the defendants' conduct, including refusing to answer relevant questions, delivering unhelpful answers on the eve of the hearing, and frustrating the plaintiff's attempts to execute its judgment, justified an elevated costs award.

The plaintiff was awarded substantial indemnity costs of $13,954.

Following a trial where the plaintiff was awarded damages and punitive damages due to the defendants' reprehensible conduct, the parties made written submissions on costs.

The court determined the proper calculation of pre-judgment interest under the Courts of Justice Act, finding the plaintiff was entitled to a single rate rather than a quarter-by-quarter calculation.

With the total judgment calculated at $1,196,682, the plaintiff beat the defendants' Rule 49 settlement offers.

The court awarded the plaintiff costs fixed at $300,000 on a substantial indemnity basis.

The plaintiffs, twin sisters, brought an action against their father for damages arising from alleged physical, psychological, and emotional abuse during their childhood and adolescence.

The court found that the father had committed battery, assault, negligence, and breach of fiduciary duty by subjecting the plaintiffs to physical violence and threats that exceeded reasonable parental discipline.

However, the court dismissed the claims for intentional infliction of mental distress and wrongful imprisonment, finding insufficient evidence that the father's conduct caused the plaintiffs' psychiatric disorders or that he completely isolated them.

The court awarded general damages of $50,000 to one plaintiff and $35,000 to the other, along with $10,000 each in punitive damages, but dismissed claims for loss of income and competitive advantage.

Following a successful motion for summary judgment, the moving party sought costs on a full indemnity basis.

The responding parties had attempted to resile from Minutes of Settlement and made unproven allegations of fraud and breach of trust against the moving party.

The court found that the responding parties' conduct unnecessarily lengthened the proceedings and that their unproven allegations of dishonesty warranted an exception to the usual costs rules.

The court awarded full indemnity costs to the moving party, excluding the costs of preparing the costs submissions.

The plaintiff real estate brokerage and its agent brought a motion for summary judgment to enforce Minutes of Settlement signed by all parties at a pre-trial conference.

The defendant vendors opposed the motion, arguing they did not understand the English proceedings or the settlement document due to a language barrier, and did not intend to release their counterclaim.

The court rejected the language barrier argument, noting the defendants had retained unilingual English professionals for the underlying transaction, conducted prior pleadings in English, and were represented by bilingual counsel at the pre-trial conference.

The court found a clear meeting of the minds on the essential terms of the settlement and granted summary judgment enforcing the agreement.

The defendant, Hydro One, brought a motion for security for costs against the corporate plaintiff, which was in receivership.

The court applied the three-step test under Rule 56(1)(d) of the Rules of Civil Procedure.

The court found that the plaintiff had insufficient assets in Ontario but successfully established that it was impecunious and unable to raise funds to post security.

Furthermore, the court determined that the plaintiff's claim for damages arising from the defendant's alleged failure to process energy conservation program applications was not devoid of merit.

Concluding that an order for security for costs would unjustly end the litigation, the court dismissed the motion.

The defendant brought a motion to set aside a noting in default and a default judgment.

The self-represented defendant had attempted to file a Statement of Defence and Notice of Intent to Defend but failed due to procedural errors and a misunderstanding of the court's administrative dismissal process.

The court found the defendant had a plausible excuse for the default, moved promptly upon learning of the judgment, and had an arguable defence on the merits.

The motion was granted, the noting in default and default judgment were set aside, and the defendant was granted leave to file a Statement of Defence.