Real Estate
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August 07, 2025
Ontario court awards $291K to estate in promissory notes case, rejects corporate veil claim
In a decision offering guidance on multiple legal issues, an Ontario Superior Court judge has awarded summary judgment of nearly $291,000 to the estate of a deceased lender in a case involving two unpaid promissory notes, while rejecting attempts to hold a corporate executive personally liable for the debts.
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August 07, 2025
Stratford stands strong in Ontario Court of Appeal decision on side-yard squabbles
The case of 2708959 Ontario Inc. v. Stratford (City), 2025 ONCA 512 is an important decision for Ontario municipalities dealing with encroachments — when a private building or structure extends onto municipal land, such as a road allowance. This case clarifies what municipalities can do when they discover such encroachments, even if they have existed for many years. The Court of Appeal held that the municipality’s issuance of building permits did not expressly approve the encroachments.
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August 06, 2025
FINTRAC publishes new supervisory framework, tightens administrative penalty policy
Canada’s anti-money laundering watchdog has published its comprehensive supervisory framework and unveiled a more streamlined administrative monetary penalties policy.
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August 05, 2025
Carney announces $1.25B program to boost softwood lumber industry
Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced plans to spend more than $1 billion to boost the competitiveness of Canada's softwood lumber industry. The federal government will channel separate amounts of $700 million, $500 million and $50 million to respective areas of the sector to help it better withstand ongoing and increasing U.S. duties.
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July 31, 2025
SCC rules Ontario court lacks jurisdiction over Ont. man’s tort claims against Italian defendants
In an important private international law judgment on the jurisdiction of Canadian courts over tort claims involving foreign defendants, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled 5-4 that an Ontario court does not have jurisdiction to determine tort claims launched against three Italian companies by an Ontario resident injured on a holiday in Venice. On July 31, 2025, Justice Suzanne Côté, writing for the top court’s majority, dismissed the appeal of injured plaintiff Duncan Sinclair and his spouse, Michelle Sinclair, from a 2023 Ontario Court of Appeal decision that stayed the plaintiffs’ Ontario Superior Court damages claims, for lack of jurisdiction: Sinclair v. Venezia Turismo, 2025 SCC 27.
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July 31, 2025
Toronto renoviction bylaw ‘very close to being unconstitutional,’ lawyer says
Landlords in Toronto now require a licence before starting repairs or renovations that require a tenant to move out, but a lawyer is saying it may not be constitutionally compliant due to it conflicting with provincial legislation.
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July 30, 2025
Ontario Court of Appeal denies intervention in anti-SLAPP case involving developer and citizen
The Ontario Court of Appeal has denied an application by the Toronto-based Centre for Free Expression (CFE) to intervene in a defamation case involving a property developer and a citizen who made corruption allegations on Facebook, in a decision that clarifies the boundaries for intervention in anti-SLAPP appeals.
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July 29, 2025
B.C. Court of Appeal orders specific performance in real estate dispute, clarifies uniqueness test
The British Columbia Court of Appeal has overturned a trial judge’s decision to limit damages in a real estate option dispute, ordering specific performance instead and clarifying when investment properties may qualify as unique enough to warrant the equitable remedy.
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July 29, 2025
Trudeau Liberals increased diversity of federal benches; female jurists made big gains: report
The former Trudeau government’s nine-year push for diversity in federal appointments since 2016 saw big progress for female jurists — who now make up 49 per cent of all federally appointed judges — along with significant gains for jurists who self-identify as Indigenous, racialized, ethnic, 2SLGBTQI+ or as having a disability, according to the latest information from the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs.
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July 29, 2025
Shifting Canadian attitudes toward immigration
For much of its modern history, Canada has stood out as a beacon of openness and multiculturalism, with immigration widely embraced as a key pillar of economic prosperity. However, in recent years, this long-standing support has begun to show signs of erosion.