Court File and Parties

COURT FILE NO.: CV-05-287428-00CP

DATE: 20210121

SUPERIOR COURT OF JUSTICE - ONTARIO

RE: FLYING E RANCHE LTD. Plaintiff

AND:

THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF CANADA on behalf of HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN IN RIGHT OF CANADA as represented by THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE Defendants

BEFORE: Paul B. Schabas J.

COUNSEL: Malcolm Ruby, Duncan Boswell, Rachel McMillan, for the Plaintiff

William Knights, Cynthia Koller, Victor Paolone, for the Defendants

HEARD: January 20, 2021

ENDORSEMENT

[1] The trial in this matter is scheduled to commence on February 1, 2021.

[2] On January 19, 2021 I received a letter from counsel jointly seeking an adjournment of the commencement of the trial to February 15, 2021. The letter informed me that discussions are taking place regarding a potential resolution and the Department of Justice will not be able to receive instructions on the matter by February 1, 2021. Additionally, the letter advised me that this class action involves funding arrangements that will be impacted by the commencement of the trial such that the settlement discussions have been treated with urgency.

[3] I convened a case conference with counsel to discuss this request on January 20, 2021.

[4] At the case conference I granted the adjournment, which is sought by both sides, and from which I infer that the discussions have some prospect of success. The trial is scheduled to take 77 days, and a two-week delay in its commencement if the matter can be resolved is not unreasonable.

[5] However, as I indicated to counsel, I will not grant further adjournments of the commencement of the trial. A lengthy period of time has been set aside by the court for the trial, which must either go ahead or be used for other cases. Further, as this action was commenced over fifteen years ago, the parties ought to be well-informed to assess whether a settlement should be accepted or not, and to provide instructions quickly. I observe that by adjourning the trial to mid-February the parties now have over three weeks to complete their ongoing discussions.

[6] Accordingly, as February 15, 2021 is Family Day in Ontario, I adjourn the commencement of the trial to Tuesday, February 16, 2021 at 10 AM.

[7] All timelines for exchange and filing of documents set out in my Reasons on Motion for Adjournment dated December 24, 2020 (Flying E. Ranche Ltd. v. Attorney General of Canada, 2020 ONSC 8072), shall continue to apply.

[8] A further case conference shall be held on Monday, February 8, 2021 at 9AM.

Paul B. Schabas J.

Date: January 21, 2021