Legal Blog

Pierringer Agreement

IPEX Inc. AT Plastics Inc. 2017 ONT SCJ (MC)

In this type of settlement agreement, a plaintiff settles with one defendant and continues its action against the other. In this case, the second defendant wanted to view the settlement agreement; in particular, since most of the agreement had already been disclosed, the defendant wanted to know the quantum of the settlement. The Master refused, on the basis of settlement privilege, relying on the 2013 Supreme Court of Canada decision in Sable Offshore Energy. The Master noted that the quantum would only be divulged after the case had been tried and a decision rendered to ensure that the plaintiff did not receive an amount that was more than its actual damages.

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