Kevin Schoenfeldt

The third parties, a lawyer and his professional corporation, moved to strike a third party claim brought against them by the defendants.

The defendants alleged negligence and other torts regarding the lawyer's preparation of a mortgage and subsequent enforcement proceedings on behalf of the plaintiff.

The court struck the claim, finding that opposing counsel owes no duty of care to the defendants, the claims regarding the mortgage were statute-barred, and the claims regarding enforcement proceedings were barred by absolute privilege.

Leave to amend was granted only for claims relating to a specific property transfer.

The plaintiffs, minority shareholders of two companies that owned marinas, sought leave to bring a derivative action against the companies' solicitor regarding the distribution of proceeds from the sale of the marinas.

The plaintiffs alleged the solicitor improperly distributed the funds to the majority shareholder or companies controlled by him.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that while the plaintiffs met the first three parts of the test for a derivative action, they failed to demonstrate that the proposed action was in the best interests of the companies, as there was no evidence the companies suffered a loss and the plaintiffs' true claim was personal.