Hans Rizarri

The court-appointed Receiver moved for approval of its Third Report, activities, and the fees and disbursements of the Receiver and its counsel.

The debtor opposed the approval of the fees, arguing they were unreasonable because the receivership was straightforward and the debtor had ultimately refinanced the property.

The court applied the Diemer factors and found the fees to be fair and reasonable, noting that the receiver's activities were necessary at the time they were undertaken pursuant to court orders.

The court approved the fees in the amount of $247,953.15 and awarded costs of the motion to the Receiver.

Following earlier motions seeking to set aside or vary an ex parte order and discharge certificates of pending litigation registered against properties connected to bankrupt estates, the trustee sought costs.

The moving parties argued they had achieved partial success and that costs should be in the cause or borne by each party.

The court found the trustee had been essentially successful in maintaining the certificates of pending litigation and defending the scope of the production order, notwithstanding limited clarification provided in the earlier endorsement.

After considering objections regarding time spent on cross-examinations and the factors in rule 57.01(1), the court fixed partial indemnity costs in favour of the trustee.

The spouses of two bankrupt individuals and related family trusts moved to set aside or vary an ex parte order obtained by the bankruptcy trustee that authorized production of financial records and permitted the registration of certificates of pending litigation against matrimonial homes held in the spouses’ names.

The applicants argued that the trustee improperly proceeded without notice, failed to provide full and fair disclosure, and did not follow statutory investigative steps under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act before seeking court relief.

The court held that the trustee had reasonable grounds to proceed ex parte due to concerns that the bankrupts might encumber the properties and that there had been no material non‑disclosure.

However, the court found that the authorization of certificates of pending litigation was procedurally irregular because no proceeding claiming an interest in land had yet been commenced.

The order was varied so that the certificates would be discharged unless the trustee commenced a proceeding asserting an interest in the properties within a specified period.