William Greenley

Following a successful motion by the plaintiff for a status hearing to prevent the action from being dismissed for delay, the plaintiff sought partial indemnity costs against the only opposing defendant.

The court found that while the defendant's opposition was not unreasonable, he was not insulated from costs.

The court awarded the plaintiff $6,000 in costs, payable in the cause, reflecting the additional expense incurred due to the defendant's opposition.

The plaintiff moved for a status hearing under Rule 48.14(5) to extend the set down deadline in an action regarding alleged construction defects in a custom home.

Only one defendant opposed the motion.

The Master found that the plaintiff provided an acceptable explanation for the litigation delay, noting that much of it was due to accommodating the defendants' requests.

The Master also found no evidence of non-compensable prejudice to the defendants.

The motion was granted, and a timetable was set for the remaining interlocutory steps.

The plaintiff brought an undefended wrongful dismissal action after his employers' statement of defence was struck and they were noted in default.

The court accepted the pleaded facts and evidence that the plaintiff, a commissioned sales employee with approximately 7½ years of service, was terminated without cause and without adequate explanation.

Applying the Bardal factors, including the employee’s age, length of service, commissioned nature of the position, and limited alternative employment opportunities due in part to a medical condition, the court determined that 12 months’ reasonable notice was appropriate.

The court also found that the manner of dismissal—sudden termination at the employee’s home with vague insinuations of dishonesty—constituted unfair and unduly insensitive conduct causing mental distress.

Damages were awarded for reasonable notice and moral damages arising from the manner of dismissal.