Cornett v. Woike

Cornett v. Woike

The court exercised its discretion under the Family Rules to appoint the agreed valuator, Chris Ounsted, as the joint expert to prepare a comprehensive business valuation because expert evidence was necessary, Ounsted was qualified and available, and the parties could afford the report; the parties were ordered to...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
2016 BCSC 2365
Parties
Claimant: Kimberley Elaine Cornett; Respondent: Alan Gregory Woike
Court
Supreme Court of British Columbia
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
16 December 2016
Procedural Posture
Contested Family Action (property and Support) / Interim Application to Appoint Joint Expert (telephonic Hearing)
Outcome
Application granted in part: joint expert appointed and comprehensive valuation ordered; parties to share costs equally; cost allocation and application costs reserved for trial judge.
Legal Topics
Joint Expert Appointment, Business Valuation, Allocation of Expert Costs, Supreme Court Family Rules Interpretation, Admission of Expert Evidence, Non Party Payment of Costs
Source Language
english
Family Law Evidence Civil Procedure Expert Evidence Property Division Spousal/support Claims Joint Expert Appointment Business Valuation +4 more

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Parties

Kimberley Elaine Cornett

Claimant

Alan Gregory Woike

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Contested Family Action (property and Support) / Interim Application to Appoint Joint Expert (telephonic Hearing)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether a joint expert business valuator should be appointed under the Family Rules
  2. 2 Whether the valuation should be a comprehensive evaluation or an estimate evaluation
  3. 3 Who must pay for the joint expert report and whether a non-party company can be ordered to pay

Ratio Decidendi

The court exercised its discretion under the Family Rules to appoint the agreed valuator, Chris Ounsted, as the joint expert to prepare a comprehensive business valuation because expert evidence was necessary, Ounsted was qualified and available, and the parties could afford the report; the parties were ordered to each pay one‑half of the report cost, the court could not order the non‑party company to pay, and the trial judge may reallocate the expense and decide costs of the application at trial.

Court Disposition

Application granted in part: joint expert appointed and comprehensive valuation ordered; parties to share costs equally; cost allocation and application costs reserved for trial judge.

Orders

  • Chris Ounsted is appointed as the jointly retained business valuation expert to prepare a comprehensive business evaluation report.
  • The parties shall each pay one half of the cost of Mr. Ounsted's report.