Pheroze John Khursheed Jeejeebhoy

The appeal arose from a dispute over whether a substantial contribution to a home purchase created a beneficial ownership interest under resulting trust principles.

The majority held the trial judge made a legal error by disregarding key third-party evidence probative of the transferor’s objective intention and allowed the appeal.

The court declared the appellants entitled to a 50% beneficial interest in the property, set aside the judgment and costs below, and remitted related sale and accounting remedies for case management.

A dissent would have dismissed the appeal, finding no reversible legal or factual error and concluding the transfer was supported by consideration.

The plaintiff, Gregory Lennox, sued Dr. Andrew Burns for medical negligence following a colostomy reversal surgery that resulted in permanent disability, including femoral nerve damage and bowel dysfunction.

Lennox alleged failure to obtain informed consent, negligent surgical technique (including blunt dissection and failure to abandon the procedure), and negligent post-operative care for C-difficile infections.

The court found that Dr. Burns obtained informed consent, as the risks of not completing the procedure or femoral nerve damage were not material or foreseeable.

The court also found that Dr. Burns met the standard of care in his surgical technique and post-operative management, despite expert disagreement on some points.

While acknowledging the plaintiff's unfortunate outcome and the potential for femoral nerve damage to have been avoided if the surgery was terminated earlier, the court concluded that the plaintiff failed to prove negligence or causation for the majority of the claimed damages.

The action was dismissed.