COURT FILE NO.: CV-20-648594
DATE: 20210428
SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE - ONTARIO
RE: BLESSING ALEACHENU on her own behalf, and EDGAR OMAKWU by his Litigation Guardian, BLESSING ALEACHENU
Plaintiffs
AND:
DR. PHILIP ROLAND SOLOMON, SOLOMON FACIAL PLASTIC, and ALL PRIMARY MEDICAL PERSONNEL WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE ALLEDGED NEGLIGENT TREATMENT, ALONG WITH ADDITIONAL, YET TO BE IDENTIFIED DEFENDANTS
Defendants
BEFORE: Chalmers, J.
COUNSEL: B. Aleachenu, self-represented
P. Leslie, for the Defendants
HEARD: April 28, 2021, by teleconference
ENDORSEMENT
[1] The Regional Senior Judge delegated the responsibility for determining requests for case management to Justice Darla Wilson. The request for case management was made by the Defendants on the consent of the Plaintiffs. On April 7, 2021, Justice Wilson assigned me as the case management judge.
[2] My assistant contacted the parties to arrange an initial case management conference. Counsel for the Defendants requested that the meeting take place before April 23, 2021 because the Plaintiffs were bringing a motion returnable before a Master on that date. I agreed to convene the case conference for April 22, 2021. Unfortunately, Ms. Aleachenu was unavailable on April 22, 2021. The case conference was rescheduled for April 28, 2021.
[3] On April 19, 2021, a Request to Schedule Short, Opposed Motions was reviewed by Justice Myers. The request was made by the Plaintiffs for an order setting aside my appointment as the case management judge. Justice Myers referred this motion to me as the case management judge.
[4] The Plaintiffs brought a motion for leave to amend the Statement of Claim and for production of documents. The motion came before Master McAfee on April 23, 2021. In her endorsement of the same date, Master McAfee adjourned the motion, because the matter had been assigned to a case management judge. Pursuant to R.77.07, all motions in the action may only be made to the case management judge. Master McAfee also advised Ms. Aleachenu of two matters that must be addressed. The Plaintiff, Edgar Omakwu is a minor and pursuant to R. 15.01(1) needs to be represented by a lawyer. Also, no affidavit of the Litigation Guardian has been filed.
[5] At the case conference on April 28, 2021, the various motions before the court were addressed. The Plaintiffs intend to bring three motions;
a. For an order setting aside my appointment as the case management judge;
b. A motion for leave to amend the Statement of Claim; and
c. Motion to compel the Defendants to produce certain documents.
[6] The Defendants advised that they intend to bring a motion dispensing with the requirement to proceed to a mediation.
[7] Counsel for the Defendants also argued that there is a preliminary matter that must be dealt with before any of the motions can be heard. As noted by Master McAfee, there is no affidavit of the Litigation Guardian for the minor, Edgar Omakwu. Also, he is not represented by a lawyer. Ms. Aleachenu stated that it is her intention to amend the claim to remove Edgar Omakwu as a Plaintiff and proceed with the action as the only Plaintiff. I advised Ms. Aleachenu that if she wishes to remove Edgar Omakwu as a Plaintiff, she will be required to seek court approval because he is a person under disability. As the case management judge, the motion for court approval would be heard by me.
[8] The Plaintiffs will proceed with the motions to amend the Statement of Claim and to remove me as the case management judge. Ms. Aleachenu advised that she may proceed with the motion for production at a later date. Counsel for the Defendants advised that she will bring the motion to dispense with the mediation at the same time.
[9] The motions are scheduled for August 4, 2021 for a half-day. The following timetable is established:
a. The Plaintiffs and Defendants shall deliver their Motion Records by July 14, 2021;
b. The Plaintiffs and Defendants shall deliver their Responding Records by July 21, 2021; and
c. The parties may file Factums to be used on the motions. If the parties wish to file factums, the factums must be served and field with the court by July 30, 2021.
[10] In filing documents with the court, the parties are to comply with the requirements set out in Schedule “A” attached.
[11] I remain seized.
DATE: April 29, 2021
SCHEDULE “A”
Filing Documents with the Court Office
Counsel and parties are asked to refrain from physically attending courthouses to file documents in person.[^1] Instead, documents should be filed electronically to help reduce the transmission of COVID-19 and to ensure that judicial officials have access to electronic documents for both in person and virtual hearings.
Counsel and parties are asked to file court documents using the Ministry’s Justice Services Online (JSO) platform, which includes the Civil Submissions Online portal (https://www.ontario.ca/page/file-civil-claim-online). Name your electronic documents according to the court’s standard document naming protocol (https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/supplementary-notice-september-2-2020/. After you submit your documents, you will receive an email from the court office within 5 business days advising whether your documents have been accepted for filing.
If your matter is urgent or you are filing documents for a court date or deadline that is fewer than 5 business days away, you must email your documents to the court office at the following email address: Civil Urgent Matters-SCJ-Toronto <CivilUrgentMatters-SCJ-Toronto@ontario.ca
Uploading Documents into CaseLines for Hearings
The Ministry of the Attorney General has procured Thomson Reuters CaseLines for the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. CaseLines allows parties to upload electronic copies of their documents for review by all participants before and during a court hearing. You will receive an email invitation from CaseLines to upload your materials in advance of your court event. The email will include a link to your case within the system. CaseLines is the document sharing platform that will be used for all matters, unless the court orders otherwise.
Court documents must be filed with the court office before being uploaded into CaseLines, unless the court orders otherwise. Where possible, upload your documents into CaseLines at least 5 days prior to your court date so the judicial official can review them in advance of the hearing. See the CaseLines notice to the profession (https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/supplementary-notice-september-2-2020/ ) for more information as well as Frequently Asked Questions about CaseLines (https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/supplementary-notice-september-2-2020/faq-caselines/).
RULES FOR SUBMITTING DOCUMENTS FOR A HEARING
(The following rules do not apply to case conferences)
The parties are referred to the checklist attached that summarizes the processes to file documents with the court and then to upload them to Caselines for use at the hearing.
The Rules of Civil Procedure, RRO 1990, Reg 194 have been amended effective January 1, 2021. Parties are reminded to refer to Rule 4.05.2 regarding the use of the Civil Submissions Online Portal and Rule 4.05.3 regarding the use of Caselines.
Email is the main method of communicating with the Civil Scheduling Unit and the Motions Coordinator in Toronto. All documents that a participant files with the court must show the participant’s email address if possible.
Counsel and all self-represented parties shall file all required motion or application documents with the Court and pay all required fees through the Civil Submissions Online Portal at https://www.ontario.ca/page/file-civil-claim-online where possible.
Sending documents to the court through the Civil Submissions Online Portal satisfies Rules and court orders requiring you to “file” the documents.
Preparing documents for a hearing by uploading them to Caselines (or previously to an online folder) is a mandatory additional step as set out below. It is not the same as filing documents through the Civil Submissions Online Portal.
Motion/Application participants must keep the court informed of their readiness and report to the court at the following times:
a. Parties must advise the Motions Coordinator by email to LongMotionsStatus.Judge@ontario.ca 30 days prior to the motion or application hearing date about the status of the motion or application, including the names, telephone numbers, and email addresses of counsel for all parties and non-parties participating in the proceeding and for all others who are representing themselves. This is required to allow for efficient assignment of a judge and for creating a folder in the Caselines.
b. Rules 37.10.1 (1) and 38.09.1 (1) require the party who is making a motion or application to attempt to confer with the other party and email a Motion Confirmation Form to the Motions Coordinator. For both Motions and Applications, the Confirmation form should be emailed to the Motions Coordinator at LongMotionsStatus.Judge@ontario.ca at least one week before the scheduled hearing date. The rule provides that the Motion Confirmation Form must be sent to the court by 2 p.m. three days before the hearing date. However, if the Motion Confirmation Form is not sent one week in advance, the hearing date will not necessarily remain available.
After the Court receives the names, telephone numbers, and email addresses of all participants 30 days prior to the motion or application hearing date, the participants will receive an email from Caselines advising that it is ready for use. Participants shall then upload their documents to Caselines in accordance the Supplementary Notice to the Profession and Litigants in Civil and Family Matters – Including Electronic Filings and Document Sharing (Caselines Pilot) September 2, 2020; updated December 17, 2020 found at https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/supplementary-notice-september-2-2020/.
To allow the judge to prepare for the hearing, all materials for use on a motion or application (except Compendiums and Costs Outlines) shall be uploaded to Caselines at least one week before the scheduled hearing date of the motion or application.
Each document loaded onto Caselines must be named using the naming rules described in section 8, Part C of the Consolidated Notice to the Profession, Litigants, Accused Persons, Public and the Media Re: Expanded Operations of Ontario Superior Court of Justice, effective May 19, 2020 https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/consolidatednotice/#C_PROCEDURES_GOVERNING_ALL_SCJ_PROCEEDINGS_DURING_SUSPENSION_OF_IN-COURT_OPERATIONS
For motions and applications that are to be heard orally (and not in writing) all participants are required to serve on each other and upload to Caselines a Compendium containing the excerpted portions of the cases and of the evidence to which the party intends to refer during the hearing as described in Rule 4.05.3 (3)3 and (7). Compendiums should be prepared once counsel knows the documents and caselaw to which reference will be made at the hearing. Compendiums may be uploaded to Caselines at any time before the hearing.
Motion and application participants shall also upload to Caselines, in WORD format, a copy of their factum, with hyperlinks to case authorities, and a draft of any order that they seek.
Costs Outlines shall be exchanged and uploaded to Caselines prior to or during the hearing of the motion or application. No Offers to Settle that are relied upon for costs purposes shall be uploaded to Caselines without leave of the presiding judge.
REQUIRED STEPS CHECKLIST
STEP
HOW
CHECK MARK IF DONE
File documents and pay all fees
File your documents and pay fees using the Civil Submissions Online portal
https://www.ontario.ca/page/file-civil-claim-online. If your matter is urgent or you are filing documents for a court date or deadline that is fewer than 5 business days away, email your documents to the court office at : Civil Urgent Matters-SCJ-Toronto CivilUrgentMatters-SCJ-Toronto@ontario.ca
Documents submitted to the court in electronic format must be named in accordance with the Superior Court’s Standard Document Naming Protocol, which can be found in section C.8 of the Consolidated Notice to the Profession, Litigants, Accused Persons, Public and the Media at: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/consolidated-notice/#8_Standard_document_naming_protocol
See new Rule 4.05.2
Ensure your email address is on all documents filed.
30 DAYS BEFORE HEARING
Email Motions Coordinator 30 days prior to the motion or application hearing date about the status of the motion or application including names, telephone numbers, and email addresses of all counsel and/or self-represented parties. After this is done, the parties will receive an email from CaseLines saying it is ready to use.
Send email to:
LongMotionsStatus.Judge@ontario.ca
AT LEAST ONE WEEK BEFORE HEARING
Upload materials to CaseLines including all Motion Records, Factums, and the requested Draft Order or Judgment.
Upload your factum and draft Order or Judgment in WORD format.
See new Rule 4.05.3
Ensure you email address is on all documents filed.
For more information about CaseLines, including answers to frequently asked questions, refer to Supplementary Notice to the Profession and Litigants in Civil and Family Matters – Including Electronic Filings and Document Sharing (CaseLines Pilot) September 2, 2020; updated December 17, 2020 found at https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/supplementary-notice-september-2-2020/
Confer with opposing counsel and email Motion Confirmation form to Motions Coordinator
For motions, see: Rule 37.10.1 and Form 37B.
For applications, see: Rule 38.09.1(1) and Form 38B.
Send email to:
LongMotionsStatus.Judge@ontario.ca
SHORTLY BEFORE HEARING
Upload Compendiums. For all oral motions and applications upload a Compendium to CaseLines at any time before the hearing which contain the excerpted portions of the cases and evidence which the parties intend to rely upon.
Counsel and self-represented parties should familiarize themselves with the CaseLines-generated page numbering on uploaded documents for ease in directing the judge to specific pages.
See email from CaseLines
Upload any amended requested Draft Order or Judgment into CaseLines
See uploading instructions in the Frequently Asked Questions About CaseLines at: https://www.ontariocourts.ca/scj/notices-and-orders-covid-19/supplementary-notice-september-2-2020/faq-caselines/
Exchange costs outlines not exceeding 3 pages in length
See Rule 57.01(6) and Form 57B
AFTER THE HEARING
Upload the costs outlines to CaseLines if there have been no Rule 49 Offers to Settle. If there have been Rule 49 Offers to Settle, then costs outlines should be dealt with in the manner directed by the Motions or Applications Judge
[^1]: Persons without computer access or who have accessibility needs are exempt.