Assessment Review Board
Commission de révision de l’évaluation foncière
PROCEDURAL ORDER
ISSUE DATE: September 24, 2015
BOARD ORDER NO. 138110
Assessed Person(s): Target Canada Co./Shoppers Drug Mart
Appellant(s): Cataraqui Holdings Inc.
Respondent(s): City of Kingston
Respondent(s): Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (“MPAC”) Region 5
Property Location(s): 945 Gardiners Roard
Municipality(ies): City of Kingston
Roll Number(s): 1011-080-170-24300-0000
Appeal Number(s): 3049892, 2898865, 2898504
Taxation Year(s): 2012
Hearing Event No. 602235
Legislative Authority: Section 40 of the Assessment Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. A.31, as amended Section 357.(7) of the municipal Act, R.S.O. 2001,c 25;
ARB Case Name: BO 138110
Heard: September 8, 2015
APPEARANCES:
Parties
Counsel+/Representative
Target Canada Co./ Shoppers Drug Mart/Cataraqui Holdings Inc.
Richard Minster+ Naila Hooda for Cushman& Wakefield Jan Goresht for Cushman & Wakefield
MPAC
Carl Davis+
City of Kingston
Debbie Brennan and Pat Carrol
The parties have already Submitted and exchanged the:
a) GRAD Report and assessment data;
b) Statement of Issues;
c) Statement of Reponse(s);
d) Reply(ies) Responses by September 30, 2015 to MPAC and By October 15, 2015 to Target if any.
The Board orders that:
The hearing will be a 2 day event commencing on January 26, 2016, at 9:30 a.m. at 216 Ontario Street, Councillor’s Chambers, Kingston City Hall 3rd Floor. (Hearing 603457). No adjournments or delays will be granted before or during the hearing except for serious hardship or illness. The Board’s Rules apply to such requests.
The Board may vary or add to this Order at any time, either on request or as it sees fit. It may alter this Order by an oral ruling or by another written Order.
Any party requiring a subsequent pre-hearing event or a motion date may contact the Registrar to secure a date and shall serve and file motion materials indicating the nature of the order requested. The motion shall be heard by teleconference call.
The appellant(s) and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation have already exchanged Statement of Issues and Statement of Response. The municipality did not serve a Statement of Response, and therefore shall be deemed to have elected not to participate actively in the appeal. The municipality remains a statutory party and shall be entitled to notice of all future events and service of all material, but without leave of the Board shall not be entitled to raise issues or present evidence at the hearing. Limited cross-examination may be permitted.
Discovery and Production
- The parties are expected to complete the process of discovery and production as necessary no later than: November 22, 2015. Discovery shall not exceed a total of two hours of examination, regardless of the number of parties or other persons to be examined. Any party may bring a motion in accordance with the Board's Rules. In the absence of such a motion, the process shall be deemed to have been completed to the satisfaction of all parties by the above date and no further motions will be permitted.
Pre-Hearing Requirements: Witnesses, Document Exchange and Expert Evidence
- The Following items are to be exchanged:
(a) A list of witnesses, including experts and the order in which they will be called by no later than: January 5, 2016;
(b) Witness statements in the form of affidavits and including the documents that the witnesses will be referring to in their evidence by no later than: January 5, 2016;
(c) Expert witness statements and reports by no later than: January 5, 2016;
(d) Reply reports and documents to be submitted by no later than: January 12, 2016; and,
(e) All other documentary evidence to be used at the hearing, to be submitted by January 19,2016.
- Any documents not disclosed by the timeframes set out above, may not be used as evidence at the hearing. Where a witness statement or expert report has not been provided by this date, the witness may not give evidence at the hearing.
Expert Witnesses and Evidence
Any party who provides a witness statement of expert witness and report must have the witness attend the hearing to give oral evidence, unless the party notifies the Board at least 10 days prior to the hearing that written evidence is not part of their record or unless all parties advise in writing that they do not dispute the contents of the affidavit.
Expert witnesses who are under summons, but not paid to produce a report, do not have to file an expert witness statement; but the party calling them must file a brief outline of the expert’s evidence.
An expert witness shall prepare an expert witness statement, which shall list any reports prepared by the expert, or any other reports or documents to be relied on at the hearing. Copies of this must be provided by no later than: January 5, 2016. Instead of a witness statement, the expert may file his or her entire report if it contains the required information. If this is not done, the Board may refuse to hear the expert’s testimony.
Other Evidence
Requests to Admit
A party may request any other to admit the truth of a fact or authenticity of a document, for the purposes of this proceeding only, by submitting a request to admit in accordance with the Rules of Practice and Procedure. A copy of the document mentioned in the request shall be served with the request, unless it is already in the other party’s possession.
A party shall be deemed to admit the truth of the facts or authenticity of the document for the purposes of the proceeding, unless within 21 days from receipt of the request the party submits a response that either specifically denies, or refuses to admit, the truth of a fact or authenticity of the a document mentioned in the request.
Confidentiality of Information
- The Board may place certain information related to the business of the parties, or third-parties that provided information, under seal at the request of the party or third-party that provided the information.
Change of Written Evidence, Witness Attendance and Agreed Statement of Facts
A party wishing to change written evidence, including witness statements, must make a written motion to the Board, in accordance with the Rules of Practice and Procedure.
A party who provides a witness’s written evidence to the other parties must have the witness attend the hearing to give oral evidence, unless the party notifies the Board at least 7 days before the hearing that the written evidence is not part of their record.
Conduct of Hearing/Hearing Procedures
- The length of the hearing will be about 2 days.
At the hearing, subject to the discretion of the hearing panel:
a) Each party is entitled to make an oral opening statement not exceeding 10 minutes in length;
b) In respect of each witness who has sworn an affidavit, there will be a brief examination in chief not exceeding 60 minutes, followed by cross-examination of similar length by any adverse party or parties, and then re-examination subject to direction of the panel;
c) In respect of any witnesses who have refused to provide an affidavit and are testifying under a summons to witness, testimony will proceed in accordance with the procedures that would otherwise apply provided that the panel may limit testimony if it is satisfied that the refusal creates an undue advantage;
d) Each party will make an oral closing argument not exceeding 45 minutes and may also provide it in writing (no longer than 15 pages), as directed by the hearing panel.
This Member is not seized.
“Vincent Stable”
VINCENT STABLE
MEMBER
COPIES TO: Parties who appeared/ and or participated
AND TO: MPAC, Attn: Manager of Case Management
Case Coordinator, Miguel Javier
Assessment Review Board
A constituent tribunal of Environment and Land Tribunals Ontario
Website: www.elto.gov.on.ca Telephone: 416-212-6349 Toll Free: 1-866-448-2248