Superior Court of Justice - Ontario

COURT FILE NO.: 12-37617; 14-45819
DATE: 2014-03-28

RE: Julie Christine DeNardi, applicant

AND: Janice Opie, respondent (12-37617)

AND RE: Janice Opie, applicant

AND: Julie Christine DeNardi, respondent (14-45819)

BEFORE: Mr Justice Ramsay

COUNSEL: Mr Brad J. Wiseman for Julie DeNardi, Ms Margaret Hoy for Janice Opie

HEARD: 2014-03-28

Corrected decision: The correction was made on October 6th, 2014.

Paragraph one referred to 2012 ONSC 1412, this has been changed to 2014 ONSC 1412.

ENDORSEMENT

[1] The applicant Julie DeNardi won guardianship of her aunt over the objection of the respondent, another aunt and therefore sister to the incapable person (2014 ONSC 1412). The applicant now asks in writing for costs. The respondent has not filed submissions to costs.

[2] The applicant’s actual costs are $34,274.46. The applicant might have been entitled to recover her actual costs from the incapable person’s estate because the application was brought for her benefit. The incapable person has in fact received a significant benefit in being protected from the respondent’s husband. However, the incapable person has no estate to speak of.

[3] As to the respondent’s liability to the applicant, costs should follow the event and they should reflect the fact that the respondent perjured herself in cross-examination for a purpose that put the incapable person at risk of sexual abuse. This inflated the costs of the proceeding unnecessarily. The costs asked for are within a recognized range for this sort of proceeding: Ziskos v. Miksche, 2007 46711 (ON SC), [2007] O.J. No. 4276. I order the respondent to pay costs to the applicant on a substantial indemnity basis and I fix those costs at $30,500 all inclusive. This amount includes the $500 that was fixed for an earlier appearance and reserved to me.

J.A. Ramsay J.

Date: 2014-03-28