R. Laliberte

The accused brought a pre-trial Charter application seeking to exclude a loaded firearm found by police during a warrantless search of his vehicle.

The police were responding to a noise complaint and found the accused and others near the vehicle, which the accused denied owning before leaving the scene.

The court found no arbitrary detention or breach of the right to counsel, but concluded the warrantless search violated section 8 of the Charter.

However, applying the Grant framework, the court admitted the evidence under section 24(2), finding that the breach was not at the most serious end of the scale, the accused's privacy interest was diminished, and there was a strong public interest in adjudicating the serious firearm charges on their merits.

The parties were unable to resolve costs following a motion and cross-motion where the court stayed assessment orders pending the completion of a related negligence action.

The respondent sought full indemnity costs of $41,045.00.

The court determined that because the litigation is ongoing and the assessment is intertwined with the negligence action, the fairest result is for costs to be in the cause.

Costs for the motion and cross-motion were reserved for the trial judge.

The defendant insurer brought a motion for summary judgment to dismiss the plaintiff mortgagee's action for negligent distribution of insurance proceeds, arguing the claim was barred by a one-year limitation period in the policy and that the plaintiff suffered no damages.

The defendant alternatively sought to transfer the proceeding from Ottawa to Kingston.

The court dismissed the motion for summary judgment, finding genuine issues requiring a trial regarding whether the insurer's conduct created a separate cause of action subject to the discoverability rule and whether the plaintiff suffered damages due to loss of control over the proceeds.

The court also dismissed the transfer motion, as the defendant failed to show Kingston was a significantly better venue.