Question:
I am making an application to RECO for reinstatement. Do I have to disclose lawsuits or pending litigation?
I am currently involved in a lawsuit with a former business associate. I can’t be positive about the final conclusion. I may end up owing them, or they may end up owing me. It’s not certain at this point. Am I obligated to provide all the details?
Answer:
No, you are not required to disclose either existing lawsuits, or pending lawsuits.
Here is the statement from Page 3 of the RECO Application:
“#4. Are there any unpaid judgments and/or unpaid debts outstanding against you, including but not limited to, CRA requirement to Pay and garnishments, or are you an officer, director, majority shareholder of a corporation or partner of a partnership to which the preceding statement applies?
Response YES NO
(If yes, refer to page 4 for Completion Instructions)”
Then, we head over to Page 4 and here is the additional information:
“Question 4
If you answered yes, you must submit a copy of each judgment and other such documents pertaining to outstanding debts against you (example, garnishments, requirements to pay, writs of execution etc.).State the amount outstanding and repayment arrangements on a separate sheet. You must also submit full particulars regarding the circumstances that led to the matter(s) on a signed and dated statement.”
So, what is RECO looking for?
If you simply look at Question 4 in the Application, it states: “……unpaid debts outstanding against you….”.
This would ordinarily include your mortgage, the lien on the car (including lease payments, any residential or office lease obligations, utilities and municipal taxes your monthly payments for your cell phone and any outstanding credit cards.
Then, we look at the explanation. Here the focus is upon judgments and the methods used by the Courts and or the Sheriff to collect upon those judgments.
That being the case, RECO is only interested in the final result of a lawsuit, assuming you lost and owe money.
RECO is not interested in allegations, claims, threats, demand letters, letters from collection agencies, the status of any lawsuits, the pleadings, affidavits, discoveries or motions in any legal proceedings.
After a half a dozen years of litigation, RECO is only interested in:
- The final Judgment, and
- The Court authorized collection proceedings.
Of course had RECO wanted the information posed in your question, it could simply have asked a very simple and basic question:
“Are you a party to any legal proceedings?”
However, RECO did not ask that question, or anything similar, so, any information along those lines does not need to be supplied to RECO.
Brian Madigan LL.B., Broker