Introduction: An adjournment is a postponement of a legal proceeding. The request is made by one of the parties to the litigation. The request can be met with agreement or opposition. Even with consent, an adjournment is not made as of right and must be judicially sanctioned. In order for a court to allow an […]
Category Archives: Complex Corporate Commercial Litigation
Piercing the Corporate Veil: A Case Study
Introduction: We have previously written about the circumstances under which our courts will pierce the corporate veil. The issue is always a tempting one. Stepping over the line, however, is not terribly easy. The temptation of collecting multiple millions for deserving plaintiffs is strong, as seen below, but carries with it considerable risk. In this […]
Do Courts Have the Discretion to Override Arbitration Clauses?
Contracting parties normally have their remedy for breaches through the court process. However, they may agree in advance to have any differences that arise resolved through mandatory and binding arbitration. Section 7(1) of the Ontario Arbitration Act (the “Act“) allows a party of such an agreement, if the other commences a lawsuit, to apply to […]
A Saga of Debt Avoidance
Both the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (“ONSC”) and the Court of Appeal for Ontario (“ONCA”) have each had a share of the ongoing debt collection saga between a judgement creditor and the debtor company in Lo Faso v. Ferracuti. The latest battle, discussed below, deals with the issue of whether, and when, amendments sought […]
Jurisdiction Matters
Introduction In April of 2013, the Rana Plaza building in Bangladesh collapsed killing and injuring thousands of people there. Many of the victims were employed to make garments for Joe Fresh, a recognizable and popular brand of clothing for Loblaws, a Canadian business. A class proceeding was commenced in Ontario seeking to recover billions of […]
Recent Uber Decision Revisits The Use of Arbitration Clauses
With Heller v. Uber Technologies Inc., the Ontario Court of Appeal (ONCA) kicked 2019 off with a decision that will likely have long-lasting implications beyond the parties involved. The case scrutinized an arbitration clause included in all agreements that Uber has with its drivers (who the company also claims are independent contractors, not employees). The ONCA ruled that […]
Oppression and the Right to Financial Information
Recently we wrote to provide an overview of the Oppression Remedy. There, we learned that the leading case dealing with the interpretation of the oppression remedy was the Supreme Court of Canada’s (SCC) decision in BCE Inc v Debentureholders. The Divisional Court of Ontario has recently released its decision in APAC Limited v. Cronin which dealt […]
A Set-Off in Litigation: A Shield or a Sword
In litigation, a set-off is, most simply, a credit sought by the defendant to be applied against a plaintiff’s claim. Essentially, it is an amount that the defendant claims the plaintiff owes him/her which should be subtracted from any damages claimed by the plaintiff. In Canadian law, there are two types of set-offs: legal and […]
Market Pressures on Contractual Obligations
We have all envied, or maybe abhorred, the skilled professional athlete who suddenly demands, and receives a contract enhancement or extension. The impetus is often some other similar athlete being awarded an extravagant sum in contractual negotiations which alters the fair market value of the contracts in that sport. Well, if it works in professional […]
Unjust Enrichment in Civil Litigation
Unjust enrichment is an equitable cause of action. It stems from an ancient principle that no person should be allowed to benefit (be enriched) at another’s expense (deprivation) without there being some valid reason in law for this to have occurred. The remedy is made in equity through a restoration (restitution). In effect, the benefit […]