Blog
Blog
Richmond Hill Councillor’s lawsuit is SLAPPed
Monday, August 8, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationDefamation, Torts, Anti-SLAPP
An action that arises out of an expression on a matter of public interest is vulnerable to a motion for dismissal under section 137.1 of the Courts of Justice Act (the “CJA”). Actions against elected
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Inadvertent disclosure and improper use of privileged communications
Thursday, August 4, 2022Stephen A. Thiele, Gavin J. Tighe, James R.G. CookLitigationDefamation, Rules of Professional Conduct
In our digital world, virtually everyone has made the mistake of hitting send on an email or text that they wish they could take back either because of...
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Conspiracy claim against lawyers dismissed
Wednesday, August 3, 2022Stephen A. Thiele, James R.G. Cook, Dara HirbodLitigationRules of Civil Procedure, Fraudulent Conveyances Act
Conspiracy is a complicated tort. In order to succeed in such a claim, a plaintiff is required to establish various elements. Where those elements do not exist, a defendant can bring...
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Lawyer not liable for client’s payment of foreign buyer’s tax on North Vancouver property
Tuesday, August 2, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, Property Transfer Tax Act, Foreign Buyer’s Tax
In Tellini v. Bell Alliance, 2022 BCCA 106 (CanLII), the British Columbia Court of Appeal reversed a trial judge’s decision that found the defendant lawyer and law firm liable for the plaintiff’s obligation to pay...
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Statutory immunity and qualified privilege protect City Councillor against night club’s action
Friday, July 29, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationDefamation, Political Law, Torts, Municipal Councillors, Qualified Privilege
In the past few months, I have written a number of blogs about court decisions involving City Councillors. The courts and other processes...
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Witnesses intimidated and conspiracy alleged while trying to conceal marriage
Monday, July 25, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationFraud, Divorce Act, Property Transfer Tax Act, Foreign Buyer’s Tax
Allegations of fraud and other unlawful conduct such as conspiracy are an attack on a person’s integrity and should not be made lightly by litigants. As the mere...
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Power of sale restored by Court of Appeal under “safe harbour protections”
Wednesday, July 20, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, Mortgage Fees, Ontario Mortgages Act
In 2544176 Ontario Inc. v. 2394762 Ontario Inc., 2022 ONCA 529 (CanLII), the Ontario Court of Appeal restored a power of sale transaction that...
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Gift or loan? Father failed to ensure his intentions were made known
Tuesday, July 19, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate
How is an adult child able to prove whether funds or property transferred to them by a parent were intended to be a gift rather than a...
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Leave required to sue representative of trustee in bankruptcy
Monday, July 18, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationBankruptcy, Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act
Trustees in bankruptcy are granted protection from civil claims for acts and omissions under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (“BIA”), as the statute requires...
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Losing an anti-SLAPP motion can be costly for a plaintiff
Thursday, July 14, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationCosts, Defamation, Torts, Anti-SLAPP
The issue of costs is important for parties to take into consideration when litigating a case. Presumptively, winning parties are entitled to...
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Ponzi scheme participants ordered to return payments that were “too good to be true”
Monday, July 11, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationBankruptcy, Limitations Act, Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act
Investors in a scheme that seems too good to be true should be aware that they may be liable to return the funds under principles of unjust...
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Civil contempt finding against litigant for breaching receivership order
Friday, July 8, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationContempt of Court
Ontario courts maintain the inherent right to control their own processes and to sanction litigants who fail to abide by court orders. While a finding of contempt is...
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Sale of partnership property allowed despite lack of authorization and disclosure
Thursday, July 7, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationPartnership
Ioannidis v. Ioannidis, 2022 ONSC 3942 (CanLII), is a cautionary tale of siblings who owned an investment property without a...
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Toronto City Councillor knocks out defamation action
Monday, July 4, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationDefamation, Anti-SLAPP Legislation, Torts
Although politicians continue to be targets of defamation actions, politicians also continue to knock them out under Ontario’s anti-SLAPP...
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Defendant liable for defamatory tweets about university instructor
Thursday, June 30, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationDefamation, Social Media, Twitter
As an Ontario court has previously recognized, Twitter is a rhetorically harsh speech environment. A stark difference in political or other views may be...
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Title insurance dispute over appraisal of “actual loss” for defects relating to municipal work order
Tuesday, June 28, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, Insurance Law, Ontario Insurance Act, Title Insurance
Residential title insurance policies are typically purchased to address potentially issues regarding title to a property. Title insurance policies may also cover...
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Interim injunction ordered to prevent neighbour from blocking private access road
Monday, June 27, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationRight-of-way Access , Real Estate, Road Access Act
Many rural properties in Ontario are accessed through private roads that traverse lands owned by one or more neighbours. The use of a private road may...
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Relief from forfeiture not granted where buyer claimed lack of capacity to enter into real estate purchase agreement
Friday, June 24, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale, Real Estate, Courts of Justice Act
As real estate markets fall, buyers are sometimes left scrambling to find alternate sources of financing when the available mortgage funds turn out...
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Lawyer not vicariously liable to opposite party in failed real estate transaction
Thursday, June 23, 2022Stephen A. Thiele, James R.G. Cook, Daria RisteskaLitigationRules of Civil Procedure, Agreement of Purchase and Sale, Real Estate
There appears to be a growing propensity on the part of litigants to sue the opposite party’s lawyer when a transaction fails or something else...
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Sale of commercial units by nearly-insolvent debtor not a fraudulent conveyance
Wednesday, June 22, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationInsolvency, Real Estate
Creditors of an insolvent or nearly insolvent debtor may be understandably frustrated if the debtor sells its few remaining assets, leaving the...
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Buyer breached duty of good faith in failing to complete assignment agreement
Tuesday, June 21, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale, Town of Caledon, GTA Real Estate
Buyers of pre-construction properties in Ontario sometimes enter into an assignment agreement with another buyer before the completion...
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Mortgage provided by corporate borrower not a “fraudulent instrument”
Monday, June 20, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationLand Title Act, Real Estate
The Ontario Land Titles Act (“LTA”) provides that a registered mortgage that is determined to be a fraudulent instrument is void and may...
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Pharmacy manager not bound by non-competition agreement
Thursday, June 16, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationNon-Compete, Working for Workers Act, 2021
In Ontario, the Working for Workers Act, 2021 provides that no employer shall enter into an employment contract or other agreement with an employee that...
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Neighbour’s “management plan” did not improperly divert equity from plaintiff’s property
Wednesday, June 15, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale
The case of Rivas v. Anobile, 2022 ONSC 3446 (CanLII), demonstrates the issues that may arise when all the terms and objectives of an...
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Environmental assessment firm not liable to buyer who did not commission their report
Tuesday, June 14, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale
Buyers should be wary about relying on inspections, appraisals or other reports prepared by a company with whom they have not directly...
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Dispute over purchase of Canadian Art results in unjust enrichment claim
Monday, June 13, 2022James R.G. CookLitigation
While it may be tempting to purchase expensive artwork directly from a private seller without the involvement (and associated costs) of a reputable art...
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City politicians succeed in getting defamation claim against them dismissed
Friday, June 10, 2022Stephen A. ThieleLitigationDefamation, Torts, Anti-SLAPP
Politics can be a rough profession, particularly where the issues being debated attract diametrically opposed views. Some social issues often bleed into...
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No misrepresentations made by seller in asset purchase transaction
Tuesday, June 7, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAsset Purchase Agreement
An asset purchase often involves an assessment of the value of the inventory and gross sales of the business being acquired. The terms of the...
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No “waiver by conduct” of financing condition in agreement of purchase and sale
Monday, June 6, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationCondominium, Agreement of Purchase and Sale, Real Estate
With the cooling of the real estate markets, buyers may be in a position to negotiate a limited time period to have a home inspection, arrange financing, or complete other due diligence before...
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Lawyer who was consulted by another lawyer disqualified from acting against other lawyer
Thursday, June 2, 2022Stephen A. Thiele, James R.G. Cook, Kevin MooibroekLitigationRules of Professional Conduct
In general, lawyers are not allowed to act on matters where they have a conflict of interest. To do so is contrary to the common law and the Rules of...
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