I. Marks

The court determined costs following the abandonment of a motion seeking to invalidate a mortgage registered against a Toronto property.

The moving party sought partial indemnity costs exceeding $12,000 after the applicants abandoned the motion.

The court held that the moving party was not entitled to recover costs incurred after a certain date because continuing to prepare materials was unreasonable while settlement discussions were ongoing and no hearing date had been set.

Considering the dockets and the proportionality of the work performed, the court found the claimed amount excessive.

Applying the factors under Rule 57.01 of the Rules of Civil Procedure, the court awarded reduced partial indemnity costs of $5,000.

The moving defendants, including a receiver manager and a bank, brought a motion for summary judgment to dismiss the plaintiff condominium corporation's claims for construction deficiencies, breach of warranty, oppression, and conspiracy, as well as various cross-claims.

Applying the 'full appreciation' test from Combined Air, the court found that the voluminous and conflicting evidentiary record precluded making dispositive findings on a summary judgment motion.

The motion was dismissed with respect to the plaintiff and the cross-claiming architect, and the action was directed to proceed to trial.