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Suing an Ontario Defendant – Security for Costs

Tal lives in Tel Aviv.  He invests $500,000 with Allen for a business venture located in Toronto Canada.  An additional $1,500,000.00 is borrowed and then Allen ignores Tal’s calls and refuses to report about the business.  Upon investigation Tal finds out there was no business.  Allen refuses to give Tal his money back and a law suit is launched.  The first hurdle Tal will face is a motion brought by Allen for security for costs.

In Ontario the loser of the law suit is often ordered to pay a portion of the winner’s legal costs.  Allen argues that if Tal loses his law suit there is a concern that any cost order against him would be unenforceable.  In cases like this the Ontario Rules of Civil Procedure provides a mechanism for the Ontario defendant to ask the court to order Tal to provide security for costs1.

Allen will argue that Tal is ordinarily resident outside Ontario, that there is good reason to believe that the law suit is frivolous and vexatious and/or that Tal has insufficient assets in Ontario to pay the costs of the defendant.

Tal might respond that the reason he has no assets in Ontario is because Allen took it all for an apparently bogus business deal.  Tal will argue that his claim has merit and that Israel has a statute2 that provides for reciprocal enforcement of judgments so the risk of an unpaid cost order is minimized.  Further, Tal has a home in Israel which is worth more than enough to satisfy any Ontario court cost order.

Under Ontario law a foreign plaintiff can possibly defeat an order for security by establishing that he has assets that can be used to satisfy a cost order in a reciprocating jurisdiction.  However, Allen will argue that under Israeli law3 there are restrictions on the ability to take someone’s home away to pay a debt so Tal should pay the security for costs. What would the court say?

There is a very interesting case relevant to our scenario that was heard by the Superior Court of Justice in Ontario called Uribe v. Sanchez4.  In that case a Florida plaintiff claimed he had no money to pay security for costs and that Florida had legislation permitting the enforcement of foreign money judgments that would include a judgment for costs made in Ontario.  So – argued the plaintiff, there was no risk to the defendant.  The judge disagreed.

The problem with the Florida plaintiff’s argument was that Florida law exempts a person’s primary place of residence from such a judgment. In this case the court ruled that this does not meet the test as to sufficiency and quality of assets in the reciprocating jurisdiction. Despite the merits of the plaintiff’s claim, the judge was not satisfied that the plaintiff could not post security or that the plaintiff would be prevented from pursuing a meritorious claim if he were required to do so.  Would an Ontario Judge see the Israeli legislation called the “Execution Law” the same way? It provides that a property that is the family home is not to be sold unless the Execution Office is convinced that the family has reasonable alternate accommodation.

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Footnotes
  1.   See Rule 56 Security for Costs RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE – R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194
     
  2.   See Foreign Judgments Enforcement Law – 1958 http://www.israelinsurancelaw.com/foreign-judgments/foreign-judgments-enforcement-law-1958.html
     
  3.   See the Israeli statute called the ‘Execution Law’, which says that a property that is the family home is not to be sold unless the Execution Office is convinced that the family has reasonable alternate accommodation.

    הגנת דירת המגורים (תיקון מס’ 15) תשנ”ד-1994 (תיקון מס’ 29) תשס”ט-2008

    38.   (א)  היו המקרקעין שעוקלו משמשים, כולם או מקצתם, דירת מגורים לחייב, לא יהיה רשם ההוצאה לפועל רשאי להורות על מכירת המקרקעין ועל פינוי החייב ובני משפחתו הגרים עמו מהמקרקעין, אלא לאחר שהוכח, להנחת דעתו, שיהיה לחייב ולבני משפחתו הגרים עמו מקום מגורים סביר או שיש לו ולבני משפחתו הגרים עמו יכולת כלכלית המאפשרת מימון מקום מגורים סביר, או שהועמד לרשותם סידור חלוף.
     

  4.   Uribe v. Sanchez 2006 CanLii 19498 (ON S.C.)
     
Toronto Estate Litigator - Charles Wagner

The author of this blog is Charles B. Wagner. Charles is a Certified Specialist in Estates and Trusts and partner at Wagner Sidlofsky LLP.

This Toronto office is a boutique litigation law firm whose practice is focused on estate and commercial litigation.

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This blog is not intended to serve as a comprehensive treatment of the topic. It is not meant to be legal advice. Every case turns on its specific facts and it would be a mistake for the reader of this blog to conclude how it might impact on the reader’s case. Nothing replaces retaining a qualified, competent lawyer, well versed in this niche area of practice and getting some good legal advice.
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