Tribunals Ontario
Tribunaux décisionnels Ontario
Assessment Review Board
Commission de révision de l’évaluation foncière
ISSUE DATE:
January 08, 2021
FILE NO.:
DM 167593
Assessed Person(s):
General Motors of Canada Company
Appellant(s):
General Motors of Canada Company
Respondent(s):
Municipal Assessment Property Corporation Region 19
Respondent(s):
City of St. Catharines
Property Location(s):
570 Glendale Avenue
Municipality(ies):
City of St. Catharines
Roll Number(s):
2629-010-011-20800-0000
Appeal Number(s):
2024803, 2339422, 2687806, 2893487, 2893488, 2917708, 2949272, 2974000, 3023580, 3088595, 3155834, 3237798, 3309277, 3335049, 3363172, 3381990 and 3408073
Taxation Year(s):
2009 to 2020
Hearing Event No.:
735978
Legislative Authority:
Rule 61 of the Assessment Review Board’s Rules of Practice and Procedure
Parties
Counsel
General Motors of Canada Company
Stephen Longo
Municipal Property Assessment Corporation
David Cowling Mattison Chinneck
City of St. Catharines
John O’Kane
REQUEST FOR:
Strike Appellant’s Amended Statement of Issues and Reply
HEARD:
November 03, 2020, in writing
ADJUDICATOR(S):
Dirk VanderBent, Vice-Chair
MOTION DECISION
OVERVIEW
1General Motors of Canada Company, the Appellant, is the assessed owner of 570 Glendale Avenue, in the City of St. Catharines (“Subject Property”) and has filed appeals for the taxation years spanning 3 assessment cycles.
2Under the Board’s Rules of Practice and Procedure (“Rules”), appeal proceedings are governed by a Schedule of Events (“SOE”). The appeal proceedings for the previous assessment cycles are governed by one SOE (“Legacy Proceeding SOE”), while current cycle appeals are governed by a different SOE (“Current SOE”).
3As will be explained in greater detail, the Appellant has served a document described as an amended Statement of Issues and Reply (“Amended SOI/Reply”). Although this has been described as one document, the Board’s Rules provide that the Appellant’s Amended Statement of Issues and Amended Reply are, functionally, two separate documents.
4The Municipal Assessment Property Corporation (“MPAC”) is a Respondent in these appeal proceedings and has brought a Motion requesting that the Board “strike” the Amended SOI/Reply on the basis that it has not been served by the required due date set out in the Current SOE. The City of St. Catharines (the “City”) is a Respondent in these appeal proceedings and has also brought a Motion requesting the same relief. The Appellant opposes their request.
Result
5For the reasons described below, the Board finds:
(a) The Rules do not provide that the Board may “strike” an Amended SOI or Amended Reply;
(b) The Appellant has not served its Amended SOI by the required due date set out in the Current SOE, and, consequently, cannot raise at a hearing any issues that are not raised in its original Statement of Issues or its Amended Reply;
(c) The Appellant has served its Amended Reply by the required due date. Consequently, the Appellant may rely on its Amended Reply, provided that the Amended Reply may only respond to new issues that have been raised in the Amended Statements of Response served by either MPAC or the City.
ANALYSIS
Applicable Requirements under the Board’s Rules
6Rules 33 confirms that the Board will assign a day (“Commencement Date”) on which the applicable schedule of events for an appeal proceeding will commence. Rule 34 provides for a standard Schedule of Events for appeals heard by way of General Proceeding, which is attached to Rules as Schedule A (“SOE”). This SOE sets out the due dates for completion of all pre-hearing steps (“Events”). These Events include the preparation of a Statement of Issues, Statement of Response and Reply, which are collectively described as pleadings. The Events also include the exchange of disclosure, obtaining expert reports, and serving amended pleadings. The Events and their associated completion due dates, which pertain to the issue raised in this Motion, are:
If the appeal is not resolved, and any of the parties intend to obtain any additional expert reports:
Weeks 63 to 78
- Each Appellant must serve on all other parties any expert reports on which the Appellant intends to rely at the hearing, as well as any amendment to the Appellant’s Statement of Issues to address any additional evidence or issues raised in an expert’s report;
August 15, 2019
Weeks 79 to 94
- Each Responding Party must then serve on all other parties any expert reports on which the Responding Party intends to rely at the hearing, as well as any amendment to the Responding Party’s Statement of Response to address any additional evidence or issues raised in an expert’s report;
July 02, 2020 (amended date)
Weeks 95 to 100
- Each Appellant must then serve any supplementary reports by its experts in reply to any expert reports served by a Responding Party.
July 30, 2020 (amended date)
Weeks 101 to 104
- If, after the completion of the additional exchange of expert reports, the Parties are still unable to resolve the appeal, each party shall file with the Board: i. its amended SOI, SOR, and Reply (as the case may be); ii. …
[emphasis added]
7As noted in the above excerpt, the Board has earlier amended the original due dates for serving responding expert reports. The reasons giving rise to this amendment do not have any bearing on the issue to be addressed in this Motion.
8Rule 41 states:
Amendment of Documents
Statements of issues or responses cannot be amended after the filing date set out in the schedule of events unless all parties consent, or as provided in these Rules, unless