Roch Dupont

The plaintiff brought a motion to strike the defendant's statement of defence and counterclaim, or portions thereof, without leave to amend, citing non-compliance with pleading rules and the defendant's failure to comply with two costs orders.

The court found the defence to be frivolous, vexatious, and scandalous due to a complete absence of material facts and unsupported, inflammatory allegations of fraud and misrepresentation.

The defendant also failed to provide evidence or pay previously ordered costs.

The court struck the entire statement of defence and counterclaim without leave to amend and ordered the defendant to pay costs to the plaintiff.

The defendants brought a motion to strike a news release of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario Committee decisions that the plaintiffs sought to introduce at a certification motion.

The document was inadmissible under the Regulated Health Professionals Act.

The plaintiffs refused to withdraw the document until the eve of the hearing.

The court found the plaintiffs' conduct unreasonable and awarded the defendants $2,500 in partial indemnity costs for the motion.

A bankrupt applied for a discharge from bankruptcy arising from substantial personal income tax debts exceeding $799,000, representing the entirety of unsecured claims.

The application was opposed by the Canada Revenue Agency, the trustee in bankruptcy, and the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy on grounds including repeated insolvencies, failure to pay surplus income, non‑compliance with bankruptcy obligations, and gambling-related conduct.

The court applied the factors in s. 172.1 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act governing tax‑driven bankruptcies and concluded that the debtor was not an “honest but unfortunate debtor.” Considering the debtor’s substantial post‑bankruptcy income and failure to pay taxes or surplus income, the court imposed a conditional discharge requiring payment of over $108,000 in surplus income and strict behavioural conditions related to gambling and tax compliance.

A bankrupt chiropractor applied for discharge from bankruptcy arising primarily from large personal income tax liabilities exceeding $200,000.

The Canada Revenue Agency, the trustee, and the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy opposed discharge, alleging improper asset transfers, inaccurate disclosures, and failure to make reasonable efforts to pay tax debts.

The court found that the bankruptcy was tax-driven under s. 172.1 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and that the bankrupt had transferred assets to his spouse at artificially low values and failed to disclose significant transactions, including RRSP withdrawals and property transfers.

The court also determined that the bankrupt’s reported income was artificially low and imputed a higher income based on professional capacity.

Balancing the statutory factors and the need to maintain the integrity of the bankruptcy system, the court granted a conditional discharge requiring substantial payments and further financial disclosure.