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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.


41511

In the Matter of the Estate of Robert Emanuel James, deceased v.

(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)
2025-04-23 Close file on Leave
2025-04-17 Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties
2025-04-17 Judgment on leave sent to the parties
2025-04-17 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 COA-23-CV-1366, 2024 ONCA 623, dated August 21, 2024, is dismissed.
Dismissed
2025-03-03 All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, for consideration by the Court
2024-10-22 Letter acknowledging receipt of an incomplete application for leave to appeal and without formal Court of Appeal order, File open
2024-10-21 Certificate (on limitations to public access), Form 23A, (Printed version filed on 2024-10-21) In the Matter of the Estate of Robert Emanuel James, deceased
2024-10-21 Application for leave to appeal, (Book Form), Missing:
-CA order (rec'd 2024-11-15)
-Amended party information in application (rec'd 2024-11-22), Completed on: 2024-11-15, (Printed version filed on 2024-10-21)
In the Matter of the Estate of Robert Emanuel James, deceased

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
In the Matter of the Estate of Robert Emanuel James, deceased Applicant Active

Counsel

Party: In the Matter of the Estate of Robert Emanuel James, deceased

Counsel
Names
Steven M. Bookman
Maia Rabinovitch
Contact information
Bookman Law Professional Corporation Barristers
1881 Yonge Street
Suite 504
Toronto, Ontario
M4S 3C4
Telephone: (416) 488-2243
FAX: (416) 488-4491
Email: sbookman@bookmanlaw.com
Agent
Name
Moira S. Dillon
Contact information
Supreme Law Group
440 Laurier Ave. West
Suite 200
Ottawa, Ontario
K1R 7X6
Telephone: (613) 691-1224
FAX: (613) 691-1338
Email: mdillon@supremelawgroup.ca

Summary

Keywords

Wills and estates — Administration of estates — Executors and administrators — Disbarred lawyer bringing application for certificate of appointment as estate trustee — Application judge refusing to appoint disbarred lawyer as estate trustee — Proper application of law of probate by s. 96 courts — Appropriate analytical framework for dismissing application for certificate of appointment of estate trustee — Whether lower courts erred in dismissing unopposed application for certificate of appointment as estate trustee

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.

Robert Emanuel James died on April 8, 2023. Applicant William J. F. Bishop, a disbarred lawyer, applied for a certificate of appointment as estate trustee.

The application judge dismissed Mr. Bishop’s application for certificate of appointment as estate trustee. The Court of Appeal for Ontario dismissed Mr. Bishop’s appeal.

Lower court rulings

November 15, 2023
Ontario Superior Court of Justice

2023 ONSC 6432

Application for certificate of appointment as estate trustee dismissed

August 21, 2024
Court of Appeal for Ontario

2024 ONCA 623

Appeal 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: 2025-04-24