Test for New Venue
The test for transferring an action to a different jurisdiction was considered in Shokar v. Windsor Casino Limited, 2019 ONSC 5242.
The plaintiff commenced a lawsuit in Brampton arising from money that he lost gambling at Caesars Windsor. He lost $342,000 over three days.
The plaintiff lived in Mississauga at the time. The defendants sought to transfer the action to Windsor.
Regional Senior Justice Thomas noted that a plaintiff has a prima facie right to select the venue for an action.
The onus rests on the party seeking to displace the chosen venue to show that the transfer is necessary “in the interests of justice”. A defendant must show that the proposed place of trial is “significantly better” than the plaintiff’s choice.
Regional Senior Justice Thomas indicated that he is required to consider a “holistic” application of the factors in subrule 13.1.02(b) of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
Several factors favoured a transfer to Windsor, including:
- A substantial part of the events or omissions giving rise to the claim took place in Windsor.
- The plaintiff’s damages were sustained in Windsor.
- There is a community interest in the lawsuit in Windsor.
- Several of the defendant’s witnesses are located in Windsor.
- A trial can be heard faster in Windsor than in Brampton.
Regional Senior Justice stated it is clear that Windsor is a significantly better location than Brampton for the trial and that the interests of justice demand a transfer of the action to Windsor.
As a result, the defendant’s motion was granted.