Gordon Bent

The plaintiff, a judgment creditor of the estate of John Sr., brought two actions alleging that the transfer of a farm property and certain trademarks by the estate to family members and their companies were fraudulent conveyances intended to defeat its claims.

The plaintiff relied on the Fraudulent Conveyances Act and the Assignments and Preferences Act, pointing to several 'badges of fraud'.

The court dismissed the actions, finding no fraudulent intent.

The court accepted that the farm property transfer and a related mortgage were legitimate transactions to secure and repay loans made by the son's companies for farm improvements, and that the family genuinely believed the Reliable lawsuit lacked merit at the time of the transfers.

The appellant appealed a trial judgment dismissing its claim on a personal guarantee.

The respondent, a bookkeeper, signed a document described to her as being for 'standard credit information' without reading the small print containing the guarantee.

The Court of Appeal upheld the trial judge's application of the Tilden v. Clendenning principle, finding that the appellant knew or ought to have known the respondent would not read the form and did nothing to bring the guarantee to her attention.

The appeal was dismissed.

The appellant appealed a trial judge's decision, confining the appeal to the issue of good faith disclosure regarding ongoing negotiations.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding no obligation or basis for reliance on the information.

Costs were fixed at $30,000, with the court reducing the requested amount based on policy and accessibility concerns rather than questioning counsel's hours or quality.