Court File and Parties

Court File No.: CV-21-659783 Date: 2022-03-08 Superior Court of Justice - Ontario

Re: David Frei, Plaintiff And: Equiton Capital Inc., Defendant

Before: D.A. Wilson J.

Counsel: Ryan R. Watkins, for the Plaintiff Chris Justice, for the Defendant

Heard: via teleconference: March 7, 2022

Endorsement

[1] This is a wrongful dismissal claim. On consent, in August 2021, a 3-day summary trial was booked for March 21, 2022. Justice Glustein ordered that the parties agree on a timetable for further steps. It appears neither counsel did anything towards obtaining a timetable until January 4, 2022 when the solicitor for the Plaintiff sent defence counsel a proposed timetable. That timetable, apparently, was not acceptable to the solicitor for the Defendant. As a result, the Plaintiff sought a case conference before Justice Glustein and it was scheduled for January 12, 2022. Through inadvertence, the solicitor for the Defendant did not attend the case conference. The timetable put forward by the Plaintiff was ordered by Justice Glustein.

[2] The parties, as I understand it, have each delivered affidavits of documents. The Plaintiff has served its Affidavit in accordance with the timetable, on February 15, 2022. There was a mediation which failed to resolve the case.

[3] Today, the solicitor for the Defendant seeks an adjournment of the trial date of March 21, 2022. He has not served the Affidavit of the Defendant as required by February 28. Mr. Justice stated that he was very busy throughout January and February and furthermore, the principal of the Defendant also has a busy schedule so he has been unable to adhere to the timetable. Consequently, he asks that the trial be adjourned to June.

[4] I am not prepared to adjourn the trial date of March 21. This was a trial date that counsel agreed to, knowing the steps that had to be undertaken to ensure the case was ready for trial. It is a 3-day summary trial; it is not a complex matter nor is it a long trial. In Toronto, the Practice Direction states that a fixed trial date will not be adjourned absent exceptional circumstances, which in my view, do not exist here. It is unclear to me why, when counsel knew the trial date was set, they waited until January to come up with a timetable for the required steps. However, a trial date is a serious matter, and it is not acceptable for counsel or a party to advise the court they need to adjourn the trial date because they have been too busy to do the work necessary to ensure the trial is ready to proceed on the trial date that was set.

[5] The Defendant is to deliver its affidavit by 5:00 Friday, March 11, 2022. The Plaintiff is to deliver any reply Affidavit by March 15, 2022 at 5:00. The pretrial shall be booked by the court thereafter and the trial will proceed the week of March 21 as scheduled.

Released: March 8, 2022