Scott De Groot

The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed the appeal of Albert Edward Green from the order of Justice John Krawchenko regarding the division of property and spousal support following the breakdown of his marriage to Kristine Jill Hill.

The court upheld the trial judge’s findings on asset valuation, the application of the Family Law Act’s equalization mechanisms, and the denial of spousal support, finding no error in the trial judge’s approach or conclusions.

Costs of $35,000 were awarded to the respondent.

The Applicant sought costs on a full recovery basis due to the Respondent's unreasonable or bad faith conduct in financial disclosure during a family law proceeding that had settled by consent order.

The Respondent argued for parties to bear their own costs or for him to receive partial indemnity.

The court found the Respondent's conduct regarding disclosure to be unreasonable, though not in bad faith, as he was inattentive to his duty to make full and fair disclosure.

This unreasonable conduct was deemed to trump any success the Respondent might have had in the underlying litigation.

The court also addressed the retrospective application of changes to the Family Law Rules concerning costs and the principles governing "costs thrown away." The Applicant was awarded costs on a substantial recovery basis.