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Summary judgment Motion granted in part
The plaintiff brought a motion for summary judgment, claiming constructive dismissal and seeking damages for the unexpired term of her fixed-term employment contract, plus punitive damages.
The court found that the plaintiff was constructively dismissed when the defendant placed her on an unauthorized, indefinite administrative suspension without pay, which constituted a fundamental breach of her employment contract.
The defendant's subsequent attempt to terminate for just cause was rejected as an impermissible retrospective dismissal based on pre-existing or discoverable grounds.
The court granted summary judgment for constructive dismissal and awarded damages for the unexpired contract term.
However, issues regarding the plaintiff's mitigation efforts and entitlement to punitive damages were deemed to require a mini-trial and a full trial, respectively, due to conflicting evidence.
A sporadically visited recreational property is not a matrimonial home under the Family Law Act.
The Office of the Public Guardian and Trustee (PGT), as statutory guardian for Laurie Ann Vidal, sought a declaration that a specific property ("Toad Lake Solely Owned Property") was not a matrimonial home.
This declaration was necessary to allow the PGT to sell the property and invest the proceeds into a Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) for Laurie, ensuring she could maintain her Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) benefits.
The respondent, Brian James Vidal (Laurie's husband), opposed the sale, claiming the property was a matrimonial home requiring his consent.
The court found the motion urgent due to the RDSP contribution deadline.
After hearing evidence, the court determined that the property had not been "ordinarily occupied" as the family residence by Mr. and Mrs. Vidal for many years, thus not meeting the definition of a matrimonial home under the Family Law Act.
The PGT's application was granted, allowing the sale without the respondent's consent.
