The plaintiff brought a motion under Rule 37.14 of the Rules of Civil Procedure to set aside a registrar’s order dismissing the action for delay under Rule 48.14.
The court considered the contextual test derived from appellate authorities, including the Reid factors: explanation for litigation delay, inadvertence, promptness of the motion, and prejudice to the defendant.
Although the motion was not brought promptly, the court found the delay in the litigation adequately explained, the failure to meet the set‑down deadline resulted from counsel’s inadvertence, and the defendant would suffer no significant prejudice if the action were revived.
Applying a contextual analysis favouring determination of matters on their merits, the court set aside the dismissal order and imposed a litigation timetable.
