The Court rendered a costs endorsement following a six-day trial in a family law matter.
The applicant wife was found to be the successful party, having obtained a judgment more favourable than her offer to settle, which included an equalization payment and lump-sum spousal support.
The court awarded the wife $65,000 in costs (inclusive of HST and disbursements) against the husband and his company, Local Motion Transportation Inc., out of $147,642.86 claimed.
The court declined to make a vesting order for costs but ruled that $32,500 of the awarded costs would be enforceable through the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) as support-related costs, given the husband's assignment into bankruptcy.
The court considered the parties' conduct, the complexity of issues, and proportionality, but did not find the husband acted in bad faith to warrant full indemnity costs.
