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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.


39513

Shalom Chaim Spira v. Aviva Engel, et al.

(Quebec) (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)
2022-01-07 Close file on Leave
2022-01-07 Reconsideration not accepted for filing, Letter by the Registrar (sent by email)
2021-12-15 Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete motion for reconsideration
2021-04-16 Motion for reconsideration of the application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), Completed on: 2021-12-15, (Printed version due on 2021-04-23) Shalom Chaim Spira
2021-02-26 Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties
2021-02-26 Judgment on leave sent to the parties
2021-02-25 Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The various requests for miscellaneous relief are dismissed. The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montréal), Number 500-09-029078-201, 2020 QCCA 1447, dated November 2, 2020, is dismissed.
Dismissed
2021-01-25 All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, for consideration by the Court
2021-01-18 Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), Copy of employment contract Shalom Chaim Spira
2021-01-07 Certificate (on limitations to public access), (Letter Form) Shalom Chaim Spira
2021-01-05 Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, (Letter Form), Will not be responding, Completed on: 2021-01-05, (Printed version due on 2021-01-12) Bonnie Spira
2021-01-04 Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, (Letter Form), Will not be responding to the application., Completed on: 2021-01-05, (Printed version due on 2021-01-11) Aviva Engel
2020-12-31 Letter advising parties of an incomplete application for leave to appeal, FILE OPENED 2020/12/31
2020-12-31 Application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), Public Access to Information Form missing-rec'd 2021/01/07, Completed on: 2021-01-07, (Printed version filed on 2021-02-23) Shalom Chaim Spira

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
Spira, Shalom Chaim Applicant Active

v.

Main parties - Respondents
Name Role Status
Engel, Aviva Respondent Active
Spira, Bonnie Respondent Active
Spira, Alexander Respondent Active

Counsel

Party: Spira, Shalom Chaim

This party is not represented by counsel.

Party: Engel, Aviva

Counsel
Name
Jeffrey Neil Schwartz
Contact information
9900 Cavendish, Suite 210
Montreal, Quebec
H4M 2V2
Telephone: (514) 484-5165
FAX: (514) 484-2262
Email: jeffschwartz@videotron.ca

Party: Spira, Bonnie

Counsel
Name
David Ettedgui
Contact information
4115 Sherbrooke Street West
Suite 420
Westmount, Quebec
H3Z 1K9
Telephone: (514) 316-3600
FAX: (514) 316-3601
Email: david@delegal.ca

Party: Spira, Alexander

Counsel
Name
David Ettedgui
Contact information
4115 Sherbrooke Street West
Suite 420
Westmount, Quebec
H3Z 1K9
Telephone: (514) 316-3600
FAX: (514) 316-3601
Email: david@delegal.ca

Summary

Keywords

Charter of rights — Human rights — Civil liability — Civil procedure — Appeals — Time — Applicant found liable for harassment and defamation and ordered to pay damages to respondent — Court of Appeal dismissing applicant’s appeal as improperly initiated based on value of subject matter in dispute falling below threshold for appeals without leave, and based on appeal having no reasonable chance of success — Application for leave to appeal after expiry of time limit dismissed — Whether Court of Appeal’s reasons for dismissing appeal and dismissing application for leave to appeal after expiry of time limit were entirely contrafactual — Whether trial judge’s misinterpretation and fraudulent invocation of jurisprudence would forbid Canadian citizens from practicing Jewish faith, thereby jeopardizing freedom of religion protected under Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms — Whether appeal to Supreme Court of Canada is presently necessary to uphold justice — Whether it would be absurd to condemn defendant to pay civil damages for alleged actions orchestrated in state of mental illness — Whether errors committed in courts below wreak havoc with civil rights of mentally ill and Jewish Canadians nationwide — Civil Code of Québec, CQLR, c. CCQ 1991, art. 1457 — Code of Civil Procedure, CQLR, c. C 25.01, art. 30, 51, 363.

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.

The respondent Aviva Engel alleged that the applicant, Shalom Chaim Spira, harassed her for several years. Ms. Engel brought an action against Mr. Spira, seeking non pecuniary damages, lost wages and reimbursement for extrajudicial fees. The Court of Quebec granted Ms. Engel’s action in part, and ordered Mr. Spira to pay over $23,000 in damages to Ms. Engel.

Mr. Spira attempted to appeal this decision to the Quebec Court of Appeal. Ms. Engel brought a motion seeking to dismiss the appeal. The Court of Appeal granted Ms. Engel’s motion and dismissed Mr. Spira’s appeal. It found that Mr. Spira’s appeal had been initiated improperly, as the amount in dispute fell below the threshold for an appeal without leave; the proposed appeal also had no reasonable chance of success. In addition, Mr. Spira’s application for leave to appeal after the expiry of the applicable time limit was also dismissed.

Lower court rulings

January 24, 2020
Court of Quebec

2020 QCCQ 336, 500-22-239952-172

Action filed by Aviva Engel against Mr. Spira — granted in part.
Mr. Spira ordered to pay Aviva Engel $23,312.40, plus interest, as damages.

February 24, 2020
Court of Quebec

500-22-239952-172

See file

November 2, 2020
Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montréal)

2020 QCCA 1447, 500-09-029078-201

Motion filed by Ms. Engel to dismiss Mr. Spira’s appeal — granted.
Mr. Spira’s appeal — dismissed.
Mr. Spira’s application for leave to appeal after expiry of time limit — dismissed.

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