2018 QCCA 1262, 2018 QCCA 1262

Heft Family Law Inc. c. Alkhalafawi 2018 QCCA 1262 COUR D'APPEL CANADA PROVINCE DE QUÉBEC GREFFE DE MONTRÉAL N o : 500-09-027551-183 (500-11-054655-184) PROCÈS-VERBAL D'AUDIENCE DATE : Le 1 er août 2018 L’HONORABLE ROBERT M. MAINVILLE, J.C.A.

APPELANTE AVOCAT HEFT FAMILY LAW INC Me MARIE-CHRISTINE KIROUACK INTIMÉ AVOCAT TALEED IHSAN SAEED ALKHALAFAWI Me ERIC BEDARD (Woods LLP) DESCRIPTION : Requête pour permission d’appeler d’un jugement rendu en cours d’instances le 25 mai 2018 par l’Honorable Robert Castiglio de la Cour supérieure, district de Montréal (Art. 31 et 30(7) C.p.c. ) Requête modifiée pour suspendre l’exécution Greffiers d'audience : Quentin Desrosiers et Lory Beauregard SALLE : RC-18

AUDITION 11 h 09 Ouverture de l’audition. Identification des avocats. Échanges entre le juge et les parties. 11 h 10 Suspension de l’audition. 14 h 59 Reprise de l’audition. Argumentaire de Me Kirouack. 15 h 09 Argumentaire de Me Bedard. 15 h 10 Me Bédard soumet un cahier d’autorités. 15 h 19 PAR LE JUGE : jugement – voir page 3. 15 h 20 Fin de l’audition. (

s) Quentin Desrosiers et Lory Beauregard Greffiers d'audience PAR LE JUGE JUGEMENT [ 1 ] Heft Family Law Inc. (« Heft ») seeks leave to appeal a judgment dated May 25, 2018 rendered by the Honourable Robert Castiglio, J.S.C., quashing a seizure before judgment. [ 2 ]

Article 30 of the Code of Civil Procedure (“ CCP ”) provides that “judgments confirming or quashing a seizure before judgment” may be appealed only with leave of a judge of the Court. The criteria set out in that

article for granting leave to appeal is the following: “the matter at issue is one that should be submitted to that Court, for example because it involves a question of principle, a new issue or an issue of law that has given rise to conflicting decisions.” [ 3 ] As recently stated by the Honourable Manon Savard in regard to a similar application for leave to appeal in Cankul c. Lavoie, 2018 QCCA 726 , at par. 2 : L’erreur de fait ou de droit ne suffit pas pour obtenir la permission d’appeler.

Celle-ci sera accordée si la question en jeu soulève une question de principe, une question nouvelle ou une question faisant l’objet d’une jurisprudence controversée, ou encore, plus exceptionnellement, si l’affaire soulève une in justice flagrante. [ 4 ] The underlying proceedings concern the homologation of an arbitration award dated May 3 rd , 2018 rendered by the Council of Arbitration for the accounts of advocates of the Barreau du Québec (the “Award”). Pursuant to the Award, Heft was granted a contingency fee of $491,870.97 under a fee agreement entered into with the respondent.

The respondent challenges the homologation of the Award by the Superior Court notably on the ground that contingency fee agreements in family law matters are unenforceable as contrary to public order. [ 5 ] On May 16, 2018, pending the results of the homologation proceedings respecting the Award, Heft obtained authorization to seize before judgment a building owned by the respondent and bearing civic address […], Lac Simon, Chénéville, Québec.

That seizure was quashed by the Superior Court on May 25, 2018 on the ground that the allegations in the affidavit supporting the seizure were insufficient. [ 6 ] Specifically, the Superior Court found the following: (

a) the allegation the respondent had closed her bank account was unsupported by any objective evidence; it should be noted that a prior seizure before judgement of that bank account initiated by Heft had also been earlier quashed by the Superior Court; (

b) no objective facts supported the allegation that there was reason to fear that the recovery of the amounts owed under the Award might be jeopardized without the seizure. [ 7 ] Though Heft asserts that these findings are errors in law, they are rather factual findings. As noted by the Honourable Marie- France Bich in Banque Royale du Canada c. Bideri , 2013 QCCA 1172 , par. 5 :

La jurisprudence établit par ailleurs très clairement que la crainte du péril dans lequel se trouve la créance doit être une crainte objective fondée sur des faits précis, qui doivent eux aussi être détaillés dans la déclaration sous serment produite au soutien de la réquisition du bref de saisie avant jugement. [ 8 ] In the absence of any objective evidence supporting the allegations that the appellant has closed her bank account or is otherwise seeking to avoid the recovery of Heft’s claim should her challenge to the homologation of the Award be dismissed, the appeal sought by Heft is doomed to failure.

As a result, leave to appeal shall be denied. [ 9 ] In these circumstances, Heft’s related application to suspend the execution of the May 25, 2018 judgment is moot and shall consequently be dismissed. FOR THESE REASONS, THE UNDERSIGNED: [ 10 ] DISMISSES the application for leave to appeal, with legal costs; [ 11 ] DISMISSES the related application to suspend the application of the May 25, 2018 judgment, without legal costs. ROBERT M. MAINVILLE, J.C.A.