Reid

The plaintiffs brought a motion to set aside an administrative dismissal of their action for damages arising from a residential oil spill.

The action was dismissed by the registrar in 2019 for not being set down for trial within five years.

The defendants conceded that the delay was explained and the deadline was missed by inadvertence, leaving prejudice as the only issue.

The court found that the defendants had early notice of the claim, evidence was preserved, and any prejudice from reviving the action was minimal.

The motion was granted and the dismissal was set aside.

The appellants appealed a small claims court decision dismissing their claim for damages arising from their detention and search by police officers.

The officers were investigating a break and enter and detained the appellants as they walked past the scene.

The Superior Court of Justice allowed the appeal, finding that the trial judge committed a palpable and overriding error in concluding there were reasonable grounds for investigative detention.

The court also found the appellants were de facto arrested, not merely detained.

However, the court upheld the finding that the search for weapons was reasonable.

The appellants were each awarded $500 in damages for false arrest and imprisonment.