Case information

Courts — Civil procedure — Enforcement of orders — Garnishment — Creditor obtaining court orders directing debtor to pay certain amounts — Creditor seeking to enforce orders by garnishing amounts owed to debtor – Garnishee corporation filing statement suggesting no moneys owed to debtor — Court of Appeal finding garnishee statement materially false — Creditor entitled to payment from garnishee — Whether garnishment provisions in provincial rules of practice should be interpreted strictly or liberally — Whether “materially false” is an objective or subjective assessment — Whether Court of Appeal established new test and, as such, should have remitted matter back to lower court for consideration — Rules of Civil Procedure, R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 194, r. 60.08

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.

Respondent Anouk Benzacar is the former spouse of respondent Ira Terk. Following their divorce, Ms. Benzacar obtained court orders directing Mr. Terk to pay certain amounts to Ms. Benzacar. Mr. Terk failed to honour those orders. Ms. Benzacar then sought to enforce an Ontario Superior Court of Justice order by garnishing debts payable to Mr. Terk.

Rule 60.08 of Ontario’s Rules of Civil Procedure sets out a process allowing a creditor to enforce an order for payment by garnishing debts that other persons (“garnishees”) owe to the debtor. Upon service of a notice of garnishment, garnishees become liable to pay to the creditor any debt that they owe to the debtor, including any debt coming due for the next six years (subject to certain restrictions).

Applicants 6990371 Canada Inc., 604402 NB Ltd. (“604”), and 4106971 Canada Inc. are corporations which were involved in a garnishment motion brought by Ms. Benzacar.

The motion judge granted her motion in part. Ms. Benzacar appealed. She argued that 604 had filed a false garnishee statement and that as a consequence, she was entitled under r. 60.08(17) to recover the entirety of the debt from 604. The Court of Appeal for Ontario allowed Ms. Benzacar’s appeal and varied the motion judge’s order to direct 604 to pay the outstanding amount due.