Mossip

At the commencement of a family law trial, the respondent father sought to introduce bank records as proof of his payment of section 7 expenses.

The records had not been previously disclosed, despite a prior court order requiring their production within 60 days.

The court refused to admit the documents, finding that their late disclosure amounted to trial by ambush, prejudiced the applicant mother's trial preparation, and formed part of a pattern of non-disclosure by the respondent.

Following a 22-year marriage, the applicant sought spousal support, retroactive child support, and remedies for spoliation of evidence and civil contempt.

The court found the applicant entitled to spousal support on both compensatory and non-compensatory grounds, refusing to impute full-time income to her.

The court included the respondent's significant post-separation income increases in the support calculation, ordering indefinite spousal support of $16,734 per month.

The court also ordered a retroactive adjustment for child and spousal support.

Furthermore, the court drew an adverse inference against the respondent for intentionally destroying business records (spoliation) and found him in civil contempt for selling a property in breach of a court order, imposing a $10,000 penalty.

The plaintiff, a production supervisor with 19 years of service, brought an action for wrongful dismissal after being terminated for cause.

The employer alleged that 1500 defective camshafts were produced on the plaintiff's shift, and that the plaintiff was dishonest during the subsequent investigation.

The court found on a balance of probabilities that the defective parts were indeed produced on the plaintiff's shift and that the plaintiff lied about his involvement.

Applying the McKinley test, the court held that the plaintiff's failure to properly supervise the line, combined with his dishonesty and prior disciplinary record, constituted serious misconduct that struck at the heart of the employment relationship.

The action was dismissed.

The applicant mother and respondent father separated after a long-term relationship.

The father had primary care of their two children for over five years.

The mother sought sole custody, relocation of the children, and spousal support, while the father sought sole custody, child support arrears, and equalization.

The court upheld the spousal support waiver in the marriage contract, finding no unconscionable circumstances.

The court awarded sole custody to the father, finding it in the children's best interests to maintain the status quo, but granted the mother interim specified access to re-establish her relationship with the children.

The mother was also ordered to pay an equalization payment, retroactive child support, and ongoing child support based on her current income.

The plaintiff suffered catastrophic injuries in a head-on motor vehicle collision on an icy municipal road.

The plaintiff sued the municipalities responsible for winter road maintenance.

The court found that the municipal snow plough operator created the icy conditions by applying a sand/salt mixture that caused a re-freeze, and then failed to return within a reasonable time to treat the resulting ice.

The court held that the Minimum Maintenance Standards did not shield the municipalities because the standards do not cover situations where the municipality creates the hazard.

The municipalities were found fully liable for the agreed damages of $1,912,176.96, with no contributory negligence on the part of the plaintiff.