Category: Uncategorized Page 3 of 9

By: Daniella Marchand and Nafisa Abdul Razak

PDF Version: Is Now the Time to Consider Anti-SLAPP Legislation in Alberta? A Reflection on Pointes Protection

Case Commented On:  1704604 Ontario Limited v. Pointes Protection Association, et al; 1704604 Ontario Ltd. v Pointes Protection Association, 2018 ONCA 685 (CanLII)

In November of last year, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) heard a case between 1704604 Ontario Limited and the Pointes Protection Association involving Ontario’s attempt at curbing Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs). As we expect a decision from the SCC soon, it is an appropriate time to reflect on how the Pointes Protectioncase has the potential to impact implementation of anti-SLAPP legislation in Alberta. At the center of the case was a recent revision to Ontario’s Rules of Court, which has been commonly referred to as an ‘anti-SLAPP’ provision.

Read More

By: Myrna El Fakhry Tuttle

PDF Version: Charter of Rights and Freedoms — Cruel and unusual punishment

Case Commented On: R v Charboneau, 2019 ABQB 882 (CanLII)

In this case, Court of Queen’s Bench Justice L.R.A. Ackerl struck down the mandatory minimum six month sentence in s 286.1(2)(a) of the Criminal Code, RSC 1985 c C-46, as provided for the offence of obtaining sexual services from a minor. In this ruling, Justice Ackerl declared that the mandatory minimum sentence was not grossly disproportionate for the accused (Mr. Charboneau), but it would be unconstitutional for an individual in reasonably foreseeable cases.

Read More

By: Jonnette Watson Hamilton

PDF Version: Keeping an Eye on Foreclosing Banks

Case Commented On: Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce v Strihavka, 2019 ABQB 835

Who is keeping an eye on the conduct and claims of banks and other financial institutions that are foreclosing on people’s homes in Alberta? In at least one case – this case of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce v Strihavka – it was a Master of the Court of Queen’s Bench who discovered a bank was providing false or, at least, misleading evidence and the bank’s lawyer was not living up to their professional responsibilities, all for the purpose of taking a person’s home away from them more quickly than allowed at law. Whether this one case is an aberration due to an isolated act of carelessness, negligence or malice, or whether this case is one of many is unclear. The facts suggest there might be systemic issues in foreclosure proceedings in this province.

Read More

By: Jonnette Watson Hamilton

PDF Version: A Cautionary Tale about Suing in the Name of the Correct Legal Entity

Case Commented On: 2040497 Alberta Ltd v Samateh, 2019 ABPC 321 (CanLII)

In 2017, Abdoulie Samateh was sued by his landlord for rent in arrears – or was he? He was sued by William Masri, and Masri was the sole owner of 2040497 Alberta Ltd, as well as its president, secretary and treasurer. And it was 2040497 that was the landlord of the apartment rented to Samateh, not Masri. And so when the 2017 action went to trial on April 23, 2019, Assistant Chief Judge Gordon W. Sharek dismissed the landlord’s claim because the party suing – Masri – was not the landlord. He also dismissed a counter-claim by the tenant because the tenant called no evidence to support his claimed loss of personal property. One month later 2040497 sued its former tenant, Samateh, for the same rental arrears, as well as for damages. But 2040497 also lost, this time following a trial in December 2019. Judge Sandra L. Corbett decided that 2040497’s action was res judicata and also an abuse of process, and she awarded enhanced costs of $1,825 to the tenant. She held that 2040497 was wrong to sue because it tried to relitigate matters that had already been decided by ACJ Sharek in the first action. Many landlords who run their business through a corporation (and others operating small businesses) might be shocked to learn that they might have only one chance, when suing, to name the correct legal entity. If they get it wrong, there might be no “do over.” In addition, there might be a monetary penalty for what Judge Corbett called “litigation misconduct”.

Read More

By: Jennifer Koshan

PDF Version: Family Violence Deaths in Alberta – An Analysis of the 2019 Reports

Reports Commented On: Family Violence Death Review Committee, Annual Report 2018-2019 and Case Review Reports 7 and 8, available here

At the mid-point of 2019, police reported that over half of all homicides in Calgary in the year to date – 54% – had occurred in the context of domestic violence. The Family Violence Death Review Committee (FVDRC) issued its annual report for 2018-19 in December 2019, which reports that between 2008 and 2018 there were 189 family violence deaths in Alberta (at 11). Of the 23 Albertans who died in family violence related incidents in 2018, 20 were victims and three were perpetrators who died in murder-suicides (at 13). The report clearly shows that family violence deaths in Alberta are gendered. Ninety per cent of perpetrators in 2018 were male, and 16 of the 20 victims were female, with the majority being women aged 20-29 who were killed with a weapon (at 14). Two of the victims were children. Previous FVDRC reports confirm that family violence related deaths in Alberta are gendered (see 2017-18 Annual Report at 5, 2016 Annual Report at 5, 2015-16 Annual Report at 14, and 2014-15 Annual Report at 28).

Read More