Paul S. Rouleau

The Court of Appeal for Ontario considered whether the application judge erred in refusing to order the return of a child to the United Kingdom under the Hague Convention, on the basis that the left-behind parent had consented to or acquiesced in the child’s retention in Canada.

The Court found that the application judge conflated consent to future relocation with consent to the present retention, and that the evidence did not support a finding of consent or acquiescence to the wrongful retention.

The appeal was allowed and the return of the child to the U.K. was ordered, with undertakings imposed to protect the child’s best interests.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal by Gurnam Multani and Surjit Multani from the orders of Justice William S. Chalmers.

The appellants had signed forbearance agreements acknowledging the amounts owing under several loans from Dramel Limited.

The court found no error in the motion judge’s reliance on the forbearance agreements to confirm the amounts outstanding and held that the fees charged did not contravene the Interest Act.

The appeal was dismissed and costs were awarded to the respondent.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario allowed the appeal of Herbert and Jacqueline Watkins, setting aside the order dismissing their action and the associated costs order.

The motion judge had dismissed the action for failure to appoint counsel or deliver a notice of intent to act in person under r. 15.04(8) of the Rules of Civil Procedure and for delay under r. 24.01.

The Court of Appeal found that the removal order for the appellants' counsel was not effective, as it was not properly served, and that the motion judge erred in relying on r. 15.04(8).

The finding of inordinate and inexcusable delay was also found to be unreasonable due to confusion over representation.

Costs of the appeal were awarded to the appellants.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appellants’ appeal regarding damages for breach of an agreement of purchase and sale.

The trial judge’s reliance on established authority and acceptance of the respondent’s evidence was upheld.

The court found no error in the trial judge’s assessment of damages or credibility findings and awarded costs to the respondent.

The appellants appealed an order giving directions regarding the distribution of funds remaining in trust after the sale of Driftwood Beach Park Limited's assets and the reimbursement of funds by certain appellants to the company.

The Court of Appeal found no basis to interfere with the motion judge’s determinations, including findings regarding the purchase and customization of a 2022 Honda, salary for James Kemp, and compensation for Ms. Kemp.

The appeal was dismissed, and costs were awarded to the respondents.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario allowed the appeal from an order refusing to set aside a default judgment against Len’s Cove Marina Ltd. The court found that the motion judge erred in weighing the relevant factors for setting aside a default judgment, particularly by failing to recognize the presence of an arguable defence and a plausible explanation for the default.

The court emphasized that the interests of justice favoured a determination on the merits and set aside the default judgment, granting the Marina 30 days to deliver its statement of defence.

The Ontario Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal from a summary judgment ordering the appellants, 2562583 Ontario Inc. o/a Meltwich Food Co. and Janarthanan Jeyaparan, to indemnify the franchisor, Meltwich Hospitality Group Inc., for amounts paid to the landlord, Ritson Division Retail GP Limited, following the franchisee’s breach of a commercial lease.

The court upheld the motion judge’s findings that the franchisee’s breach triggered indemnity obligations under the franchise and assignment agreements, and that the settlement between the franchisor and landlord was reasonable.

The appellants’ arguments regarding the scope of indemnity, timing of liability, and procedural fairness were rejected.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal of Carmela and Vincenzo Di Trapani from a costs order made after an 18-day civil jury trial regarding injuries sustained by William “Bill” Pye in a 2016 motor vehicle accident.

The trial judge awarded Pye costs of $995,854.50 and prejudgment interest at 3%.

The appellants argued the trial judge failed to scrutinize fees and disbursements, did not apply reasonableness and proportionality, and erred in awarding a higher prejudgment interest rate.

The Court of Appeal found no error in the trial judge’s approach, holding the costs and interest rate were reasonable and supported by the record.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal of Aliamisse O. Mundulai from a final order in a family law dispute with Ying Huang.

The appeal concerned parenting, property, and financial issues following the parties' separation.

The court found no reversible error in the trial judge’s decisions regarding the child’s therapy, beneficial ownership of an office unit, and the treatment of the respondent’s pension for equalization purposes.

Costs were awarded to the respondent.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the Law Society of Ontario’s appeal regarding the respondent’s application for licensure as a paralegal.

The court found that the tribunals below properly considered the respondent’s criminal offence and professional misconduct, and that there was no error in their assessment of her rehabilitation and good character.

The appeal was dismissed with costs to the respondent.

The appellant, K.M., appealed convictions for sexual assault and for choking the complainant to render her incapable of resisting.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal, finding that while the trial judge’s reasons were not ideal, they were sufficient when read contextually.

The trial judge’s credibility findings and rejection of the defence theory of fabrication were adequately explained, and the application of the W.(D.) framework was proper.

The appeal was dismissed.

The appellant, Krishan Arora, appealed his sentence of seven years and two months for four counts of forcible confinement and one count of extortion.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal, finding no error in the sentencing judge’s approach to aggravating and mitigating factors.

The court held that the sentencing judge did not double count aggravating circumstances and properly considered the appellant’s guilty plea, remorse, and gambling debts.

The sentence was found to be fit given the seriousness of the offences and their impact on the victims.

The appellant, Marvin Gurango, appealed his three-year custodial sentence for possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario found no error in principle or law in the sentencing judge’s decision, nor was the sentence manifestly unfit.

The court emphasized the importance of denunciation and deterrence for this offence and found the sentence consistent with similar cases.

Leave to appeal was granted, but the appeal was dismissed.

The appellant, Sasikaran Thanapalasingam, appealed his conviction for first-degree murder of his wife, Tharshika Jeganathan.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal, finding no error in the trial judge’s analysis or conclusions.

The court held that the evidence overwhelmingly supported the finding that the murder was planned and deliberate, and that the appellant’s intoxication did not impair his capacity to form the requisite intent.

The trial judge’s consideration of the evidence, including the impact of alcohol and alleged mental disturbance, was thorough and appropriate.

The Court of Appeal for Ontario allowed the appeal of P.J.C., who had been convicted of assaulting his three stepchildren and sexually assaulting one of them.

The central issue was whether the trial judge erred in admitting expert evidence from Dr. Lori Haskell on the neurobiology of trauma and its effects on memory.

The Court found that the expert evidence was not necessary for the trial judge to assess the credibility and reliability of the complainants, and that its presentation—particularly through hypotheticals closely tracking the complainants’ evidence—improperly bolstered their credibility.

The prejudicial effect of the evidence outweighed any probative value.

The Court declined to apply the curative proviso and ordered a new trial.

The appellant was convicted of robbery following a home invasion and sentenced to four years' imprisonment.

On appeal, he argued the trial judge erred by relying on the rejected testimony of a co-accused and failing to caution himself about unsavoury witness evidence.

He also sought to introduce fresh DNA evidence and appealed his sentence based on the parity principle.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeals and the fresh evidence motion, finding no error in the trial judge's assessment of the circumstantial evidence or the differing sentences imposed on the co-accused based on their respective moral culpability.

The appellant purchased a commercial condominium unit under power of sale proceedings.

The respondents, who operated a Hindu temple in the unit, sought to enforce an unregistered option to purchase contained in their lease with the previous mortgagee in possession.

The motion judge granted specific performance, allowing the respondents to purchase the unit for $350,000.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, finding the motion judge erred by failing to consider whether the appellant was a bona fide purchaser for value without notice under the Land Titles Act.

The matter was remitted for a trial on this issue.

The appellant appealed his sentence of 2 years and 11 months' imprisonment for firearms and drug trafficking offences, arguing he should have received additional credit for lockdowns and triple bunking during presentence custody.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding that the sentencing judge was aware of the difficult circumstances and that the few additional days of lockdown and triple bunking shown in newly filed records would not impact the sentence.

The appellant pleaded guilty to possession of fentanyl for the purpose of trafficking and other offences, receiving a net sentence of four years and seven months.

On appeal, he sought to introduce fresh evidence and argued the sentencing judge failed to adequately consider his drug addiction and harsh pre-sentence custody conditions as mitigating factors.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, finding the sentencing judge properly elicited information from the self-represented appellant, who had stated his addiction did not motivate the offence.

The court also held the sentencing judge appropriately weighed the harsh pre-sentence conditions against the seriousness of the offence.

The appellant appealed his convictions for production and possession of methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking, arguing the trial judge erred in failing to exclude evidence under s. 24(2) of the Charter.

The appellant claimed his ss. 10(a) and 10(b) rights were breached due to a delay in providing a Vietnamese interpreter upon his arrest.

The Court of Appeal found no error in the trial judge's application of the Grant factors, noting the delay was an isolated mistake, the appellant was not mistreated, and the evidence was obtained pursuant to a valid search warrant issued prior to the arrest.

The conviction appeal was dismissed, and the sentence appeal was abandoned.