Bakhsh v. Merdad

Bakhsh v. Merdad

The Court held the respondent's claim pleads a resulting or constructive trust over Ontario property, not an equalization claim under the FLA; Saudi courts lacked jurisdiction over property located outside Saudi Arabia so the claim is not res judicata; therefore the two-year FLA limitation did not apply and the...

Source-derived case information.

Citation
2022 ONCA 130
Parties
Plaintiff (respondent): Rana Abdulrahman Bakhsh; Defendant (appellant): Khalid Bin Abdul-Aziz Abbas Merdad
Court
Court of Appeal for Ontario
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
15 February 2022
Procedural Posture
Civil Family/property Dispute / Appeal From Motion Decision (motion to Dismiss/transfer; Costs)
Outcome
Appeal dismissed and motion for leave to appeal costs dismissed
Legal Topics
Constructive Trust, Resulting Trust, Equalization, Jurisdiction, Res Judicata, Limitation Periods, Costs
Source Language
english
Family Law Property Law Conflict of Laws Civil Procedure Constructive Trust Resulting Trust Equalization Jurisdiction +3 more

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Parties

Rana Abdulrahman Bakhsh

Plaintiff (respondent)

Khalid Bin Abdul-Aziz Abbas Merdad

Defendant (appellant)

Procedural Posture

Civil Family/property Dispute / Appeal From Motion Decision (motion to Dismiss/transfer; Costs)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the respondent's claim is an equalization claim under the Family Law Act
  2. 2 Whether the Ontario court has jurisdiction to adjudicate ownership of the Ontario condominium
  3. 3 Whether the claim is res judicata by virtue of Saudi annulment proceedings

Ratio Decidendi

The Court held the respondent's claim pleads a resulting or constructive trust over Ontario property, not an equalization claim under the FLA; Saudi courts lacked jurisdiction over property located outside Saudi Arabia so the claim is not res judicata; therefore the two-year FLA limitation did not apply and the action is not statute-barred; the motion judge did not err in refusing to dismiss, transferring the matter to the family list, and awarding costs.

Court Disposition

Appeal dismissed and motion for leave to appeal costs dismissed

Orders

  • Motion to dismiss refused by motion judge; proceedings transferred to the family law list
  • Original motion judge awarded respondent $10,000 costs of the motion