Civil Litigation - Defendant - ODC

The appellant was successful on appeal, which resulted in an order for a new trial due to the trial judge's inadequate reasons.

The appellant sought costs for both the appeal and the first trial.

The Divisional Court awarded the appellant $15,000 in costs for the appeal, noting the issues were not complex.

However, because the need for a new trial was not the respondents' fault, the court ordered that the appeal costs not be payable until the completion of the second trial, and that the costs of the first trial be in the cause.

The appellant tenant sued the landlord and its independent contractor for water damage caused by a leaking roof.

The Master granted summary judgment dismissing the claim against the contractor, finding that a waiver of subrogation clause in the lease protected the landlord and those for whom it was 'in law responsible'.

The Divisional Court dismissed the tenant's appeal, holding that the Master had jurisdiction to interpret the lease and correctly concluded that the landlord could not delegate its contractual duty to repair the roof, making it responsible in law for the contractor's work.

The applicant sought an interlocutory injunction to restrain the LCBO from terminating its temporary authorization to operate an agency store and from fulfilling a new contract with a competitor, Daisy Mart, pending a judicial review of the procurement process.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that while there was a serious issue to be tried regarding fairness in the procurement process, the applicant failed to establish irreparable harm, as any financial loss was compensable in damages.

Furthermore, the balance of convenience favoured the competitor, who had already undertaken substantial renovations and incurred expenses in reliance on the contract.

The moving parties sought leave to appeal an interlocutory order upholding a Master's refusal to strike an affidavit.

During cross-examination on the affidavit, the witness consulted with his lawyer, and opposing counsel subsequently claimed solicitor-client privilege over the communication.

The Master found no evidence of interference and dismissed the motion to strike.

The Divisional Court granted leave to appeal, finding good reason to doubt the correctness of placing the onus on the examining party to prove interference when the communication was prima facie improper and shielded by privilege.

The court also found the issue of improper communication during cross-examination to be a matter of general public importance.

The moving parties (defendants) sought leave to appeal to the Divisional Court from an order dismissing their motion for summary judgment.

The underlying dispute involved the interpretation of an indemnity clause in an agreement of purchase and sale regarding environmental contamination discovered after closing.

The court found there was good reason to doubt the correctness of the motion judge's interpretation, satisfying the first branch of the test for leave to appeal under Rule 62.02(4)(b).

However, the court held that the interpretation of a specific agreement between specific parties did not raise issues of broad public importance.

As the second branch of the test was not met, the motion for leave to appeal was dismissed.

The respondent College sought costs on a substantial indemnity basis or personally against the applicant's counsel for alleging bad faith and misrepresentation.

The Divisional Court found that while the respondent's factum contained an inaccuracy, there was no intention to mislead.

The court declined to award substantial indemnity costs or costs against counsel personally, noting that while counsel overreacted, the conduct did not warrant such sanctions.

Costs were awarded to the respondent on a partial indemnity basis in the amount of $15,000 all inclusive.

The City of Toronto appealed a trial judge's decision regarding liability for a slip and fall in a municipal laneway.

The City argued the trial judge erred in assessing the standard of maintenance, failing to apply the strict notice period for sidewalks under the Municipal Act, and failing to find contributory negligence.

The Divisional Court dismissed the appeal, finding no palpable and overriding error in the trial judge's factual findings or application of the law, and upheld the trial judge's costs award.

The appellant appealed a trial decision finding a valid agreement to split settlement funds 50/50 with the respondents.

The Divisional Court dismissed the appeal, holding that the trial judge did not err in finding a valid agreement, implying a reasonable term for the split, or rejecting the argument that the agreement was unenforceable for illegality due to an undertaking given to the insurer.

Costs of $6,000 were awarded to the respondents.

Sierra Club Canada brought a motion for an interlocutory injunction to halt demolition and construction activities for the Windsor-Essex Parkway, arguing the work would irreparably harm endangered species despite a permit issued under the Endangered Species Act.

The court dismissed the motion, finding no evidence of irreparable harm and that the balance of convenience favoured continuing the project with the permit's mitigation measures.

The respondent's cross-motion to dismiss the judicial review application for delay was adjourned to the panel hearing the application.

The moving party sought an interim injunction to halt the demolition of houses pending the hearing of an interlocutory injunction.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that the moving party failed to establish irreparable harm, noting that pre-screening of the properties had found no snakes.

The court also found that the balance of convenience favoured the responding party, as the demolition plans had been public for some time and the moving party could have sought relief earlier.

The third party insurer sought leave to appeal a motion judge's comments regarding alternative relief under Rules 20 and 21.

The motion judge had granted the insurer's primary request to stay the main action and third party claim, but commented in obiter that he would have dismissed the alternative relief had he not granted the stay.

The Divisional Court dismissed the application for leave to appeal, finding that the motion judge's hypothetical comments did not constitute an appealable interlocutory order.

The appellants, who were self-represented at the time, appealed a master's order striking out their statement of defence for failing to comply with production orders.

On appeal, the Divisional Court admitted fresh evidence under the Palmer test, finding it provided context to the appellants' actions and showed they were not deliberately flouting court orders.

The court allowed the appeal, holding that the master denied the appellants procedural fairness by failing to explain the severe consequences of the motion, not inviting submissions on the specific issue of striking the defence, and ignoring a less drastic alternative proposed by the respondent's counsel.

The appellant appealed a civil jury verdict dismissing his claims for assault, negligence, and intentional infliction of nervous shock against police, ambulance attendants, and store security, and awarding damages on the respondents' counterclaims.

The appellant argued the trial judge erred by refusing adjournments, admitting prejudicial expert testimony, and excluding medical reports.

The Divisional Court dismissed the appeal, finding no palpable and overriding errors in the trial judge's discretionary rulings on adjournments and evidence, and concluding there was a sufficient basis for the jury's punitive damages award.

The Town of Collingwood sought leave to appeal a decision of the Ontario Municipal Board that dismissed an appeal respecting the Education Development Charge By-laws of two school boards.

The Divisional Court dismissed the motion for leave to appeal, finding that the Town failed to identify any arguable error of law in the Board's decision, as the issues raised primarily involved questions of fact or mixed fact and law.

The defendants sought leave to appeal a partial indemnity costs award of $650,000 granted to the plaintiffs following a lengthy and aggressively fought class action certification motion regarding allegedly defective pacemakers.

The Divisional Court dismissed the motion for leave to appeal, finding no conflicting decisions and no reason to doubt the correctness of the costs order, noting that the defendants' aggressive approach significantly drove up the plaintiffs' costs.

The plaintiffs sought leave to appeal an interlocutory order transferring three related actions to the Commercial List.

The plaintiffs argued that the actions, which alleged negligence against the defendants for their involvement in mining operations in Ecuador, were not commercial in nature.

The Divisional Court dismissed the motion, finding no good reason to doubt the correctness of the motion judge's discretionary decision to transfer the actions, as the pleadings relied on commercial statutes and raised issues of corporate governance.

The court also found that the proposed appeal did not involve matters of general public importance.

The defendants sought leave to appeal an interlocutory order of the case management judge, who directed that the plaintiffs' motion for class certification be heard prior to the defendants' motion for summary judgment.

The Divisional Court dismissed the motion for leave to appeal, finding no conflicting decisions and no reason to doubt the correctness of the case management judge's discretionary decision regarding the timing of procedural motions.

The appellant appealed a Small Claims Court judgment ordering him to pay the Ministry of Transportation for a fire department invoice arising from a motor vehicle accident.

The appellant argued there was a reasonable apprehension of bias because the deputy judge was a former mayor of a neighbouring municipality and an associate at his law firm was a volunteer firefighter for the responding fire department.

The Divisional Court dismissed the appeal, finding no reasonable apprehension of bias and no palpable and overriding error in the deputy judge's factual findings that the fire department provided a compensable service.

Following a successful appeal by the defendants regarding a representation order, the parties sought a determination on the costs of the original motions before the motion judge, which had been reserved.

The motion judge had originally awarded $9,000 globally to the plaintiff for success on three motions.

The Divisional Court suggested an arbitrary reduction of the costs award to $6,000 to reflect the defendants' success on appeal regarding one of the motions, and referred the matter back to the motion judge if the parties could not agree.

The appellant brought a motion for an immediate stay of the continuation of disciplinary proceedings commenced against her by the Law Society of Upper Canada, pending the hearing of her appeal and judicial review.

She alleged prosecutorial misconduct and a reasonable apprehension of bias by the Hearing Panel.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that the appellant failed to establish that the balance of convenience was in her favour or that she would suffer irreparable harm if the hearing progressed to its conclusion.

The court also declined to remit the matter to a previous judge for reconsideration.