Skip to main content

Case information

Conduct a refined search of the Supreme Court of Canada database to obtain details on the status of a matter before the Court.


35552

Dorothy Kirby v. Hope Place Centres

(Ontario) (Civil) (By Leave)

Docket

Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.

List of proceedings
Date Proceeding Filed By
(if applicable)
2014-05-07 Close file on Leave
2014-05-06 Certificate of taxation issued to, Mr. Henry S. Brown Q.C.
2014-05-06 Decision on the bill of costs, in the amount of $1,641.72, Reg
2014-05-06 Submission of the bill of costs, Reg
2014-04-09 Bill of costs, Completed on: 2014-04-09 Hope Place Centres
2014-01-31 Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties
2014-01-31 Judgment on leave sent to the parties
2014-01-30 Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal for Ontario, Number M42201, 2013 ONCA 459, dated July 4, 2013 is dismissed with costs.
Dismissed, with costs
2013-12-23 All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, Abe Ro Mo
2013-11-08 Applicant's reply to respondent's argument, Completed on: 2013-11-08 Dorothy Kirby
2013-10-30 Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2013-10-30 Hope Place Centres
2013-09-30 Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal but without formal Court of Appeal order
2013-09-30 Book of authorities, (2 volumes) Dorothy Kirby
2013-09-30 Application for leave to appeal, Final C/A order missing - Received on 2013-10-09 (2 volumes), Completed on: 2013-09-30 Dorothy Kirby

Parties

Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.

Main parties

Main parties - Appellants
Name Role Status
Kirby, Dorothy Applicant Active

v.

Main parties - Respondents
Name Role Status
Hope Place Centres Respondent Active

Counsel

Party: Kirby, Dorothy

Counsel
Names
Geoff R. Hall
Brandon Kain
Contact information
McCarthy Tétrault LLP
Suite 5300
Toronto Dominion Bank Tower
Toronto, Ontario
M5K 1E6
Telephone: (416) 601-7856
FAX: (416) 868-0673
Email: ghall@mccarthy.ca
Agent
Name
Colin S. Baxter
Contact information
Cavanagh Williams Conway Baxter LLP
1111 Prince of Wales Drive
Suite 401
Ottawa, Ontario
K2C 3T2
Telephone: (613) 569-8558
FAX: (613) 569-8668
Email: cbaxter@cwcb-law.com

Party: Hope Place Centres

Counsel
Names
Ron Craigen
Christopher M. Andree
Contact information
Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP
50 Queen Street North
Suite 1020
Kitchener, Ontario
N2H 6M2
Telephone: (519) 575-7523
FAX: (519) 571-5023
Email: ron.craigen@gowlingwlg.com
Agent
Name
Henry S. Brown, Q.C.
Contact information
Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP
2600 - 160 Elgin St
P.O. Box 466, Stn "D"
Ottawa, Ontario
K1P 1C3
Telephone: (613) 233-1781
FAX: (613) 788-3433
Email: henry.brown@gowlings.com

Summary

Keywords

None.

Summary

Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.


Civil procedure – Time delays – Unrepresented litigant’s wrongful dismissal action dismissed ex parte and her motion to set aside that order was dismissed – Motion to extend time for filing notice of appeal dismissed although respondent not prejudiced by delay – Whether the rules of court must be applied in a manner which is sensitive to the unique difficulties faced by self-represented litigants and persons with mental health problems.

The applicant set up the respondent as a small not-for-profit agency providing support services for persons suffering from alcoholism and drug addiction. She was Executive Director until she allegedly suffered a breakdown due to the stress of amalgamating with another corporation and harassment by a board member. Financial irregularities came to the attention of the Board of Directors and it decided to suspend the applicant with pay pending an investigation. When she could not attend meetings due to failing health, the applicant was placed on sick leave. She was terminated after allegedly suffering further harassment, abuse and invasion of her privacy.

The applicant launched a wrongful dismissal action. The respondent claimed to have terminated her for cause. The applicant left for an extended time in Newfoundland and had understood that the court would delay her trial until November. However, when she missed an April pre-trial hearing, she was ordered to pay costs of $13,000 and confirm her list of witnesses and the gist of their evidence by June 2011. The respondent successfully applied for an ex parte dismissal of the action in August. Upon her return, the applicant brought an urgent motion to set aside the dismissal Order. That motion was dismissed. Although the applicant expressed an intention to appeal the order, she did not consult counsel in time. Her subsequent motion for leave to extend the time for filing her notice of appeal was dismissed, as was her appeal of that decision.


Lower court rulings

June 7, 2012
Ontario Superior Court of Justice


See file

July 4, 2013
Court of Appeal for Ontario

M42201, 2013 ONCA 459

See file

Filed documents

The memorandums of argument on an application for leave to appeal will be posted here 30 days after leave to appeal has been granted unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of the memorandum by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.

If you have questions about a memorandum of argument or want to use a memorandum of argument, please contact the author of the memorandum of argument directly. Their name appears at the end of the memorandum of argument. The contact information for counsel is found in the “Counsel” tab of this page.

Downloadable PDFs

Not available

The factums of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here at least 2 weeks before the hearing unless they contain personal information, information that is subject to a publication ban, or any other information that is not part of the public record. You may also obtain copies of factums by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.

If you have questions about a factum or want permission to use a factum, please contact the author of the factum directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each factum.

Downloadable PDFs

Not available

The condensed books of the appellant, the respondent and the intervener will be posted here upon receipt of the electronic version, 2 days prior to the scheduled appeal hearing. You may also obtain copies of condensed books by filling out the Request for Court records form or by contacting the Court’s Records Centre either by email at records-dossiers@scc-csc.ca or by telephone at 613‑996‑7933 or at 1‑888‑551‑1185.

If you have questions about a condensed book or want permission to use a condensed book, please contact the author of the condensed book directly. Their contact information appears on the first page of each condensed book.

Downloadable PDFs

Not available

Webcasts

Not available.

Date modified: 2025-02-27