Permanent Lafarge v. Canada, docket T-78-98

                                                                                                                                  Date: 20000105

                                                                                                                                 Docket: T-78-98

Ottawa, Ontario, the 5^th day of January, 2000

Present: The Honourable Mr. Justice Pelletier

BETWEEN :

                                                        PERMANENT LAFARGE

                                       (A DIVISION OF LAFARGE CANADA INC.)

                                                                                                                                               Plaintiff

                                                                         - and -

                                                    HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN

                                                                                                                                           Defendant

                                             REASONS FOR ORDER and ORDER

[1]         In this action, the plaintiff appeals a decision of the Canadian International Trade Tribunal with respect to their claim for a refund of federal sales tax. The Statement of Claim was filed January 16, 1998 and the Statement of Defence was filed March 19, 1998. The matter lay dormant until May 27, 1999 when a notice of status review was issued. Counsel for the Plaintiff wrote to Registry on June 28, 1999 advising that his clients had decided to seek new counsel and asking that no further steps be taken until counsel was retained.    An extension of time to September 28, 1999 was granted by Prothonotary Aronovitch.    On October 27, 1999 I signed an order extending the time for responding to the notice of status review to December 15, 1999.

[2]         On December 14, 1999 newly appointed counsel filed a Notice of Change of Solicitors dated that day. He also wrote to the Court to advise that he had been appointed on December 10, 1999 and had therefore not had the opportunity to review the file. He requested a further extension of time till February 2, 2000 to respond to the Notice of Status Review.

[3]         The plaintiff has known since June 28, 1999 at the very latest that it would be appointing new counsel and that the Notice of Status Review required a response. In spite of that, it did not appoint counsel until December 10, 1999 with the result that counsel is not in a position to respond to the Notice of Status Review in the time provided in my order. The plaintiff's failure to deal with this matter in a reasonable time frame is unexplained and is unreasonable. In the circumstances, I am not satisfied that this claim ought to be continued.

ORDER

WHEREAS Notice of Status Review was sent to the plaintiffs in the care of their counsel on or about May 27, 1999; and

WHEREAS counsel advised on June 28, 1999 that new counsel would be appointed and requested an extension of time to respond to the Notice of Status review; and

WHEREAS by order dated October 27, 1999, the plaintiff was granted until December 15, 1999 to appoint counsel and to respond to the Notice of Status Review; and

WHEREAS the plaintiff did not appoint counsel until December 10, 1999 and is therefore not in a position to respond to the Notice of Status Review as ordered; and

NOW THEREFORE IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the plaintiff's claim is dismissed for delay.

                                                                                                                                                   Judge                     

FEDERAL COURT OF CANADA TRIAL DIVISION

NAMES OF SOLICITORS AND SOLICITORS ON THE RECORD

COURT FILE NO.:                      T-78-98

STYLE OF CAUSE:                   PERMANENT LAFARGE (A DIVISION OF LAFARGE CANADA INC.) v. HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN

REASONS FOR ORDER AND ORDER OF THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PELLETIER

DATED:                                       January 5, 1999

SOLICITORS OF RECORD:

Blake, Cassels & Graydon                                                      for the Plaintiff Ottawa, Ontario

Mr. Morris Rosenberg                                                              for the Defendant Deputy Attorney General of Canada

Ottawa, Ontario