Lately the Ontario Courtroom of Enchantment confirmed a decrease court docket ruling that did one thing drastic – it struck out a husband’s pleadings fully, and allowed the spouse to proceed within the Household regulation proceedings on a wholly uncontested foundation. This treatment is reserved for what the regulation considers to be “distinctive” circumstances; the Courtroom confirmed that the husband’s persistent dangerous religion within the proceedings thus far amply warranted such a response.
By the use of background: The husband and spouse had been married in 1992. In 2011 they signed a separation settlement through which the spouse waived all rights to help and equalization, and gave up all curiosity within the company enterprises, accounts, investments, and useful vehicles the rich husband owned. Nevertheless, she gave proof that the spouse had misled her and coerced her into signing this doc.
The couple apparently reconciled and continued to dwell collectively for a number of years. However in 2015, the husband requested the spouse to depart their jointly-owned house, which she did. Regardless that it was price over $4 million, he allegedly threatened and coerced her to switch her curiosity to him for $1 – however nonetheless insisted she stay liable on the $1,600,000 indebtedness secured towards it. All this regardless of the spouse’s annual revenue being solely about $20,000.
The events then commenced divorce proceedings. In its ruling the Courtroom of Enchantment reduce to the guts of the husband’s rampant misbehavior all through this course of:
[5] The historical past of the [husband’s] delay, disregard of court docket orders, and non-disclosure was described in appreciable element by the movement choose with hearings numbering a minimum of 27. The movement choose acknowledged at para. 16 of his causes:
To counsel this can be a typical household dispute, or perhaps a excessive battle dispute, is a critical understatement. The Applicant [wife] diligently sought to prosecute her monetary claims however has been met with a critical, persistent, deliberate and flagrant response from the Respondent [husband] on this continuing. The Respondent ignored his obligation to make full and correct monetary disclosure and disregarded quite a few court docket orders. The Respondent’s conduct quantities to dangerous religion rising to the extent of fraudulent misconduct. The Respondent engaged the help of [two friends], who then additionally engaged in misconduct and ignoring court docket orders. All of this was executed by the Respondent, with the help of [his friends], for the only objective to keep away from and defeat the Applicant’s monetary claims to equalization and spousal help of household belongings. By all accounts, the Respondent is a rich one who selected to have interaction in misconduct and ignored court docket orders, risking that his pleadings could be struck, relatively than defending the Applicant’s monetary claims on the deserves. All to guard his monetary wealth and never danger dropping any of it to the Applicant on this continuing.
The Courtroom additionally chronicled the husband’s litany of dangerous religion conduct that confirmed his deliberate disregard for court docket orders and process all through the method. Amongst different issues:
- He did not pay any of the quantities he was ordered to pay the spouse, other than some very modest help funds.
- He sought many adjournments, or else precipitated them failing to attend at scheduled court docket hearings, which severely prejudiced the spouse.
- He repeatedly ignored court docket orders to make monetary disclosure.
- He moved a few of his belongings round, the place they might not be discovered or disclosed to the spouse.
- When one in every of his requests for an adjournment was denied, he “primarily emptied his financial institution accounts”.
- He organized to have two of his pals, putative mortgagees on the matrimonial house, promote it below energy of sale proceedings – unbeknownst to the spouse. He then took fee of the proceeds in full, regardless of being in breach of one more order to pay $1.6 million into court docket.
All of this led to the prior movement choose putting out the husband’s pleadings (although not earlier than giving him one final likelihood to conform, which he ignored).
The current enchantment by the husband – who didn’t trouble to look – was dismissed. The Enchantment Courtroom wrote:
Delay and obfuscation of his monetary affairs was the [husband’s] “recreation plan” all through. It stays his recreation plan.
The circumstances on this case are distinctive. They’re one of many worst, if not the worst circumstances, in any of the authorities referred to by Counsel. Comparisons with different circumstances within the authorities is futile.
The one affordable treatment, the Enchantment Courtroom agreed, was to strike the husband’s pleadings fully, and permit the spouse to proceed with an uncontested trial. No additional discover needed to be given to the husband going ahead.
Whereas acknowledging this sanction was usually an “instrument of final resort”, the Courtroom rejected the notion {that a} lesser one needs to be imposed. Nothing had labored on the husband up to now, and there was nothing to suggestion he would abruptly cooperate sooner or later.
For the complete textual content of the choice, see:
Manjunath v. Kuppa, 2024 ONCA 668 (CanLII), https://canlii.ca/t/k6nhn