Supreme Court of Canada

Hanson et al. v. Johnson et al., [1982] 1 S.C.R. 619

Date: 1982-05-10

Peter J. Hanson and the Administrator of the Yukon Territory Appellants;

and

Sam Johnson Respondent;

and

Mark Hoffman and Ray Wotton Respondents.

File No.: 16509.

1982: April 29; 1982: May 10.

Present: Ritchie, Dickson, Beetz, Estey, Chouinard, Lamer and Wilson JJ.

ON APPEAL FROM THE COURT OF APPEAL FOR THE YUKON TERRITORY

Practice—Application to strike out—Whether or not statement of claim scandalous, frivolous and vexatious, and disclosing no reasonable claim—Yukon Supreme Court Rules, Rule 24(a), (b).

APPEAL from a judgment of the Yukon Territory Court of Appeal, January 12, 1981, dismissing an appeal from a judgment of Maddison J. dismissing an application for an order to strike out the writ of summons and statement of claim. Appeal dismissed.

Sydney B. Horton, for the appellants.

Ronald S. Veale, for the respondents.

The judgment of the Court was delivered by

DICKSON J.—The appellants applied to a judge in Chambers under the provisions of Rule 19(24) (a) and (b) of the Yukon Supreme Court Rules for an order striking out the writ of summons and statement of claim issued against the appellants, on the ground that the statement of claim disclosed “no reasonable claims” and was “scandalous, frivolous and vexatious”. Maddison J. dismissed the application and his decision was upheld by the Court of Appeal of the Yukon Territory (Taggart, Hutcheon JJ.A., Craig J.A. dissenting).

We have not been persuaded that there was error on the part of the courts below in dismissing

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the motion to strike out. The appeal is accordingly dismissed with costs.

Appeal dismissed with costs.

Solicitor for the appellants: Sydney B. Horton, Whitehorse.

Solicitors for the respondent Sam Johnson: Cable, Veale, Cosco & Morris, Whitehorse.