Christopher Matthews

The respondent sought partial indemnity costs of $144,054.57 following a successful application.

The applicants argued for no costs, asserting the matter was a case of first impression, or alternatively $30,000.

The court held that costs should follow the cause because the parties were advancing private financial interests rather than a public interest.

Applying the Boucher principles, the court found the respondent's time spent was excessive compared to the applicants' and reduced the requested fees by approximately 40 percent, fixing costs at $75,000 plus HST and disbursements.

The plaintiffs sued their former insurer, Economical, and a related foundation, claiming entitlement to demutualization benefits after Economical declined to renew their home insurance policy due to their claims history.

The defendants moved for summary judgment.

The court granted the motion and dismissed the action, finding that the plaintiffs were not eligible policyholders on the crystallization date for demutualization benefits.

The court also held that Economical had no duty to warn the plaintiffs about its internal underwriting guidelines or to renew the policy, and that the claim was statute-barred as it was commenced outside the two-year limitation period.