Costs Endorsement

Court File No.: 07-CV-338587 PD2
Date: 20120605
Superior Court of Justice - Ontario

RE: LOUISA OWUSU

Plaintiff

AND:

KWAKU BOACHIE and GIDA GYAA FRIMPONG

Defendant

Before: Mr. Justice Lederer

Counsel:
Dominic Saverino, for the Plaintiff
G. Peter Abraham, for the Defendant

COSTS ENDORSEMENT

[ 1 ] This action concerned a dispute over the sale of a house. The plaintiff and the defendant, Kwaku Boachie, were the beneficial owners of the property. The plaintiff sued for half the proceeds of the sale. She sought $62,000 and was awarded judgment in the amount of $54,179.54.

[ 2 ] The plaintiff seeks her costs of the action.

[ 3 ] Counsel for the defendant, based on the understanding that costs typically follow the event, acknowledged that the plaintiff should have her costs. There was a succession of offers to settle, but counsel for the plaintiff acknowledged that none of them conformed to the requirements of Rule 49 of the Rules of Civil Procedure. This being so, there is no reason to award costs on an elevated scale.

[ 4 ] The plaintiff seeks costs, on a partial indemnity scale, of $26,609.22. The defendant refers to the established idea that costs are not to be assessed on “an item by item” basis. The discretion of the court should be applied and, as counsel for the defendant sees it, costs to the plaintiff should not exceed $20,000.

[ 5 ] I have no concern with the hourly rate charged or the hours taken up by this matter. I do have a concern that, given the value of the claim and the nature of the disagreement, the costs are somewhat higher than the defendant would, in the normal course, expect to pay.

[ 6 ] Costs are to be paid by the defendant to the plaintiff in the amount of $23,000.

LEDERER J.

Date: 20120605