The plaintiffs brought a motion seeking various relief concerning the estate of the late Dean Joseph Costanza, including a suspensory order under the Succession Law Reform Act, a Mareva injunction, and an order to deposit life insurance proceeds into trust.
They argued that the $500,000 life insurance payout, designated to the minor defendant, should be deemed part of the deceased's net estate for dependant support purposes under s. 72(1)(f) of the Act.
The court dismissed these requests, finding that the life insurance proceeds, already paid out pursuant to a prior unappealed court order, were not subject to clawback under s. 72(1)(f) due to the application of s. 72(7) and because they were no longer "payable." The court further held that the plaintiffs' requests constituted an impermissible collateral attack on the prior order and an abuse of process.
The Mareva injunction was also denied as the plaintiffs failed to establish a strong prima facie case or a genuine risk of asset dissipation.
