Patrick Levesque

The plaintiff brought an action for unpaid commissions owed by the defendant for the sale of medical equipment in India and Nepal.

The defendant raised three defences: that part of the claim was statute-barred, that it was entitled to a set-off for breach of contract, and that paying the debt risked prosecution under the Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act due to unproven charges in India.

The court rejected all defences, finding that the defendant had acknowledged the debt via email, that no liquidated sums were owed for a set-off, and that the foreign criminal charges were irrelevant.

Judgment was granted in favour of the plaintiff for the full amount claimed.

The defendants brought a motion for an order that the same judge hear the third party proceeding as the main action, which was dismissed.

The third party sought costs of the motion.

The court found that costs should follow the event but that the $14,000 claimed was disproportionate for a procedural motion that could have been resolved at a case conference.

Costs were fixed at $5,000 on a partial indemnity scale.