Author: Nick Tenev

Executive Summary In Dicenzo (Linden Park) Holdings Inc. v. Sadeghyar, 2026 ONSC 1566, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice delivered a significant reminder to builders, developers, and transactional counsel that strict statutory compliance in condominium sales is not optional. The failure to prove delivery of a single mandatory document, the Residential Condominium Buyers’ Guide, rendered a $1 million pre-construction purchase agreement non-binding on the purchaser. As a result, the builder lost its claim to the purchaser’s deposit and damages exceeding $150,000. This decision underscores the importance of robust document delivery systems and evidentiary recordkeeping in electronic real estate transactions. Background In…

Executive Summary A March 2026 decision from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice offers a sharp reminder for transactional real estate lawyers: the absence of initials on a modified contract clause does not necessarily invalidate that clause. In Potz v. Pietrangelo, 2026 ONSC 1405, Associate Justice Mak granted summary judgment in favour of the vendor, awarding over $76,000 in damages after a purchaser failed to close — and the purchaser’s entire defence rested on a clause that was never initialed. Background On October 28, 2021, the vendor agreed to sell a residential property in Innisfil, Ontario for $645,000, with a…

Ontario Court Denies Certificate of Pending Litigation in Tian v. Jiang Executive Summary In Tian v. Jiang, 2026 ONSC 1947, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice reaffirmed a fundamental principle in property law: a contractual promise does not, by itself, create a proprietary interest in land. The Court denied the plaintiff’s motion to register a Certificate of Pending Litigation (CPL), emphasizing that CPLs are not tools to secure unsecured debts or enforce purely contractual rights. This decision highlights the importance of properly structuring private lending and development agreements, particularly where real property is intended to serve as security. Background The…

Executive Summary In Shiralian v. Wyldewood Creek Inc., 2026 ONCA 163, the Court of Appeal for Ontario reaffirmed the enforceability of carefully drafted limitation of liability clauses in pre-construction real estate agreements. The Court upheld a clause limiting the purchasers’ remedies to the return of their deposits plus applicable interest, even though the developer terminated the agreement after deadlines set out in the Tarion Addendum. The decision stands as a strong endorsement of the freedom of contract, particularly where purchasers are sophisticated parties represented by legal counsel and had the opportunity to negotiate the agreement. Background Three purchasers, acting as…

Kunnath v. Cartier, 2026 ONSC 1096  |  Ontario Superior Court of Justice  |  Released February 23, 2026 A purchaser who cannot finance a deal and asks for an extension but never closes is not simply a buyer in difficulty. In the eyes of Ontario courts, that purchaser may be in anticipatory breach of the agreement of purchase and sale (“APS”), and the vendor may be entitled to walk away, relist the property, and keep the deposit. That is precisely what the Ontario Superior Court of Justice confirmed in Kunnath v. Cartier, a decision released in February 2026 that transactional real…

Med Group Ontario Inc. v. Owemanco Mortgage Holding Corporation, 2026 ONSC 703, is a timely reminder that creative drafting in mortgage commitment letters does not always survive contact with a borrower or a court. Released February 13, 2026, the decision by Justice Dunphy of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice addresses the enforceability of an automatic renewal clause in a private mortgage commitment letter and carries practical lessons for anyone who drafts, reviews, or relies on such documents. Background In March 2024, the borrowers, Med Group Ontario Inc. and related parties, obtained a one-year, $5 million mortgage loan from Owemanco…

9409394 Canada Inc. v. Ghislain Lascelles, 2026 ONSC 819  |  Ontario Superior Court of Justice  |  February 24, 2026 If you act for buyers and sellers of residential or commercial property in Ontario, you may not spend much time thinking about adverse possession or proprietary estoppel. But a recent Ontario Superior Court decision is a useful reminder that boundary disputes and the legal doctrines that resolve them can surface at the worst possible moment: when your client is trying to sell. The Facts in Brief The applicant, 9409394 Canada Inc., purchased a property in 2015. The property had…

Gohir v. Nawaz et al., 2026 ONSC 894  |  Ontario Superior Court of Justice  |  Released February 12, 2026 The Story in Brief Two old friends. Large sums of cash moving across borders. Two Toronto-area real estate purchases. No written agreements. When the friendship soured, those informalities became expensive. In Gohir v. Nawaz, Justice Fowler Byrne of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice was asked to untangle a complex web of money transfers between Aziz Ur-Rahman Gohir (the plaintiff), his old friend Ahmed Nawaz, and Ahmed’s son Muhammad. The transfers totalled hundreds of thousands of dollars, flowed in multiple currencies…

Ontario Court of Appeal | February 13, 2026 | 2026 ONCA 106 For transactional real estate lawyers, the story in Wright v. Wright is a familiar one: a family arrangement, a property with rising value, and a handshake deal that eventually needed paper behind it. What makes this Ontario Court of Appeal decision worth your attention is the court’s treatment of an incomplete contractual term. Specifically, whether a blank provision in a co-ownership agreement was enough to void the entire deal. Background: A Bay of Quinte Arrangement In 2019, Karin Wright, who was then in her eighties, purchased a waterfront…

Mino et al. v. Foster et al., 2026 ONSC 838  |  Ontario Superior Court of Justice  |  February 23, 2026 Introduction A recent Ontario Superior Court decision offers a timely reminder for transactional real estate lawyers: an incorrect MLS listing is not a blank cheque for a buyer who already knew the true facts. In Mino et al. v. Foster et al., Justice Hebner granted summary judgment against a buyer who refused to close, awarding the sellers over $213,000 in damages, after text messages proved that the buyer had independently discovered and confirmed the property’s actual zoning before signing the…