Articles 2023

Matilda Lici of Aird and Berlis LLP discusses recent decisions from across Canada dealing with the appointment of representative counsel and the various factors that will inform a court’s exercise of discretion.

Spencer Jones of Lerners LLP summarizes a decision where the Ontario Court of Appeal considered the meaning of the term “debt or liability resulting from obtaining property or services by false pretences or fraudulent misrepresentation” and whether false statements made during a discovery in underlying litigation is included within this term.

On September 22, 2022, the first set of amendments from Bill 64 will come into force. Although most amendments will come into force in September 2023, below we highlight significant changes in force this September.

On August 31, 2022, the Ontario Court of Appeal overturned a trial decision in First National Financial GP Corporation v. Golden Dragon Ho 10. Inc., unanimously holding that when a contract is silent on an issue, absent contradicting contractual provisions, a mortgagor must provide additional consideration to amend the agreement to receive a right to prepay and discharge a mortgage.

I am honoured and privileged to be serving as the chair of this section for the upcoming year. For those who don’t know me, I am a 2014 call, and a partner at Cassels in Toronto. Thank you to Joanna Wice (Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing) for her incredible leadership as chair last year. I have big shoes to fill!

Following are this week's summaries of the civil decisions of the Court of Appeal for Ontario for the short week of September 6, 2022. There were only four decisions, two of them short.