Superior Court of Justice

The accused, Idriss Buni, was charged with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon against Muna Riyaleh.

The central issue was whether Ms. Riyaleh was the victim of an unprovoked knife attack by Mr. Buni or whether she attacked him and was injured during a struggle.

The court found Ms. Riyaleh to be a credible witness and rejected Mr. Buni’s account as contrived and inconsistent with the evidence.

The court was satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt of Mr. Buni’s guilt and found him guilty as charged.

The plaintiff, Fady Dawood, brought a motion for summary judgment against Popes Property Holdings Inc. (PPH) and Nicholas John Pope, alleging breach of an agreement of purchase and sale for real property.

The defendants agreed the matter should be resolved by summary judgment and did not oppose judgment against PPH, but Pope sought reverse summary judgment to dismiss the claim against him personally.

The court found PPH liable for the plaintiff’s losses but dismissed the action against Pope, holding that PPH had properly adopted the contract after incorporation and that there was no basis to pierce the corporate veil or impose personal liability on Pope.

This decision addresses an application by several media organizations for virtual access to a high-profile murder trial, invoking the open court principle.

The court reviews the constitutional and statutory foundations of open courts, the discretion of judges to permit or deny virtual access, and the practical realities facing media coverage.

Ultimately, the court finds that while the open court principle does not require virtual access, it may be granted at the court’s discretion in light of modern realities and the decline of local news coverage.

The defendant, Samantha Robinson (carrying on business as Postering Ottawa), brought an anti-SLAPP motion under section 137.1 of the Courts of Justice Act to dismiss a defamation action brought by Diffusart International and Marc Agostini.

The court found that while Robinson’s expressions related to a matter of public interest, the plaintiffs’ claim had substantial merit and Robinson did not have valid defences.

The court concluded that the harm to the plaintiffs outweighed the public interest in protecting Robinson’s expression, and dismissed the anti-SLAPP motion without costs.

This costs endorsement addresses the allocation of costs following a stay of proceedings due to the plaintiff’s failure to promptly disclose a settlement with certain defendants.

The court reviews the history of the Anton Piller Order, the Comeback Order, and the subsequent motions, ultimately awarding partial indemnity costs to the successful defendants, Marc Castillo and Castillo HR Consulting Inc., in the amount of $45,000.

The court declines to revisit costs already determined by a previous order and limits recovery to the portion of the motion related to the stay, excluding costs for the Anton Piller Order and preparation of a discovery plan.

The plaintiff, Slave Paunovski, brought an ex parte motion for a Mareva injunction against the defendants, alleging fraud and dissipation of assets.

The court granted the injunction against Danny and Mara Risteski, finding a strong prima facie case of fraud and knowing receipt, but dismissed the motion against Donco Investments Ltd. due to insufficient evidence.

The decision reviews the procedural history, the legal test for Mareva injunctions, and the adequacy of disclosure and evidence provided.

This costs endorsement follows a 13.5-day trial in a family law matter.

The court considered the parties’ submissions on costs, the divided success at trial, and the reasonableness of offers to settle.

The court applied the Family Law Rules and relevant case law, ultimately ordering the respondent, Mr. Elliott, to pay the applicant, Ms. Churchill, $15,000 in costs.

The reasons for judgment in this case are not available at this time.

This decision concerns the admissibility of prior inconsistent statements by a key Crown witness, Justina Murray, in the trial of Gregory Anthony Beasley for two counts of first-degree murder.

The Crown sought to admit Ms. Murray’s video-recorded out-of-court statements for their truth, as her trial evidence was inconsistent and she did not adopt material aspects of her prior statements.

The court analyzes the necessity and reliability requirements for admitting such hearsay under the principled exception, referencing leading authorities including R. v. K.G.B. and R. v. Khelawon.

The court finds the statements admissible, concluding that the procedural safeguards (including video recording, opportunity for cross-examination, and, in one case, an oath) were sufficient to ensure reliability, and that the probative value outweighed any prejudicial effect.

The court granted an application by Halton Standard Condominium Corporation No. 534 for an order requiring Christine Antunes to permanently vacate her condominium unit due to ongoing disruptive behaviour, including excessive noise and harassment of residents and staff, in breach of a prior Tribunal order and the Condominium Act.

The court found that both Christine and her mother, Coralia Maria Antunes (the unit owner), had breached their obligations under the Act and the condominium’s declaration and rules.

The court rejected the respondents’ arguments regarding disability accommodation, finding no evidence of a causal link between Christine’s addiction and her conduct, and held that, in any event, the duty to accommodate had been satisfied.

Christine was ordered to vacate the unit within 120 days.

This uncontested trial endorsement addresses property and spousal support claims following the separation of Maria Teresa Del Grosso and Peter (Pietro) Del Grosso after 35 years of marriage.

The court identifies evidentiary deficiencies regarding the applicant’s claims for equalization of net family property and reimbursement of interest payments on joint lines of credit, as well as the quantum of spousal support.

The trial is adjourned pending further affidavit evidence.

The court considered written submissions on costs following the plaintiffs' success in two related defamation actions against the defendant.

The plaintiffs were awarded substantial indemnity costs in both actions, reflecting the court's view of the defendant's egregious conduct and the importance of deterrence.

The court rejected the defendant's arguments for lower costs and found the plaintiffs' bills of costs reasonable, noting the complexity and significance of the proceedings, including the involvement of expert witnesses and an intervenor.

The court considered a motion by Royal Protective Services Inc. to compel Daniella and Shawn Leis to attend examinations for discovery before other parties in a complex, multi-party action arising from a motor vehicle accident.

The court found that Daniella and her father were the only parties with direct knowledge of the essential facts and ordered that they be examined first, rejecting the Leis defendants' reliance on the technical order of examinations under Rule 31.04(3).

Costs were awarded to the moving party on a partial indemnity basis.

The decision addresses an application by Deren Akyeam-Pong to exclude evidence seized during a search of a Toronto hotel room, arguing that the search warrants were issued without sufficient grounds and that his rights under sections 8 and 9 of the Charter were breached.

The court reviews the adequacy of the Information to Obtain (ITO), the role of confidential informant privilege, and the sufficiency of judicial summaries of redacted material.

The court finds that the ITO, as supplemented by a judicial summary, provided sufficient credible and reliable evidence to support the issuance of the warrants.

The application is dismissed.

This costs endorsement follows the granting of anti-SLAPP motions by the three defendants.

The court addresses the scale and quantum of costs, the issue of duplication between legal teams, and the entitlement of a self-represented litigant to costs.

The court awards full indemnity costs to the defendants, finding the requests fair and reasonable, and declines to award compensation to the self-represented defendant for his own time.

The defendants sought an interlocutory injunction to restrain the plaintiff from enforcing its mortgage security by way of power of sale, pending the resolution of their counterclaim alleging misrepresentation.

The court found that while there was a serious issue to be tried regarding alleged misrepresentation, the defendants failed to establish irreparable harm, as any losses could be compensated by damages.

The motion for an injunction was dismissed.

The decision addresses an urgent motion brought by the respondent, Maria Mahmud, seeking to enforce recommendations from a case conference and a domestic contract regarding parenting time with the child, Minha Abid.

The court found the matter was not urgent, emphasizing the importance of case conferences, settlement discussions, and the confidentiality of those proceedings.

The court also discussed the doctrines of res judicata and abuse of process, finding neither applied to bar the motion.

The motion was dismissed as not urgent, and no costs were awarded.

The decision addresses a motion by iHealthOx Inc. and Terri Storey to set aside a default judgment obtained by Welch LLP for unpaid professional fees.

The court found that the defendants were validly served and that iHealthOx Inc. did not have an arguable defence on the merits, but that Ms. Storey had an arguable defence regarding her personal liability.

The default judgment was set aside as against Ms. Storey, conditional on payment of costs, but not as against iHealthOx Inc.