Daniel Tram

The plaintiff brought an action against the defendants for failing to close a real estate transaction.

The defendants, in turn, brought a third-party claim against the buyers of their own home, who had also failed to close, causing the defendants to default on their purchase from the plaintiff.

On a motion for summary judgment, the court found the defendants liable to the plaintiff for the loss in property value and carrying costs.

The court further held that the third-party buyers were liable to the defendants for those same damages, as it was reasonably foreseeable that their failure to close would cause the defendants to default on their subsequent purchase.

The court declined to grant relief from forfeiture for the third-party buyers' deposit and refused to stay enforcement of the judgment pending a fourth-party action against a real estate agent.

The defendants brought a motion to transfer a franchise dispute action from Toronto to Ottawa.

The court found the motion premature because the defendants had already been noted in default in Toronto for failing to file defences.

The court adjourned the transfer motion sine die, directing the defendants to first bring a motion in Toronto to set aside the noting of default under Rule 19.03, or obtain the plaintiff's consent to file defences.