Legal Blog

Frivolous Appeal – Rule 2.1.01

National Bank of Canada v. Guibord 2020 Ont CA

The defendant appealed a timetabling endorsement, clearly an interlocutory order. A single judge of the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal on grounds that the court lacked jurisdiction. The defendant then appealed that decision to a panel of the Court of Appeal. The plaintiff moved under Rule 2.1.01 for determination that the defendant’s appeal was frivolous, vexatious, and an abuse of process. The Court agreed that Rule 2.1.01 applied and that the defendant’s appeal was frivolous because it was completely devoid of merit. One cannot an appeal interlocutory order to the Court of Appeal without leave.

Written by Jonathan Speigel, the founding partner of Speigel Nichols Fox LLP, leads the litigation and construction practices.