You Left Property: Can Your Ex Throw Out Your Stuff?

There's a famous Carrie Underwood song chosen "Before He Cheats".  The video's plotline shows the singer taking a baseball bat to the souped-upward cherry truck of her cheating beau; she gleefully smashes its windows and tail-lights and inflicts other damage, all while the unwitting boyfriend cavorts with another woman. When you are a jilted lover, revenge can feel sweet.  But fifty-fifty if y'all two have parted ways more amicably, there remains the question what rights they may accept. Rights to property they left behind when moving out. Whether into the waiting artillery of a new partner, or not.

Can Your Ex Destroy or Dispose of Your Belongings?

In a nutshell:  No.  Or at least not without letting you know.

Under Canadian police force – and no affair how acrimonious your split – your Ex cannot just dispose of your things. At least without giving you reasonable notice of his or her intent to do and so.   If done correct, that notice is in writing. It should give y'all clear indication of the time(southward) that yous can come by to pick upwardly your things. At that place should likewise exist details on how to gain access to the premises and make it articulate that if you do not come to get them, then your things will be disposed of.

- Article Continued Below -

Subscribe

To Our Newsletter

You accept sufficient time and ample opportunity to make the necessary arrangements to come become the items if you wish.

What if They Practise Information technology Anyway?

If your Ex does non give you lot this advanced notice, he or she may become legally liable to pay you the reasonable replacement costs of your disposed-of items.  This may come as part of your divorce proceedings before the Family court. It may include an adjustment to what would unremarkably be the equalization corporeality that your Ex owes you. Or it could be a reduction of the amount that you owe him or her (as the example may be).

Y'all managed to end your human relationship without going to Family court? Then your recourse may involve starting new legal proceedings against your Ex. Either with criminal charges for theft or mischief, or through a civil claim for the tort of "conversion".

Simon V. Poirier

A recent decision in a instance called Simon v. Poirier[1] illustrates the terminal scenario.  The quondam couple had a hard, acrimonious separation after the man moved out.  At i point the man took the woman's engagement ring and custom-made wedding ceremony band without her knowledge. He pawned it at a local pawnshop for $500.   The woman was outraged. She purchased those rings herself for $8,400. There was besides evidence that their current replacement value was $14,500.   She located the rings at the pawnshop, where the owner offered to sell them for $600 by a certain deadline.  She decided not to pay, and the rings were sold to a third party soon after.

The woman successfully sued the man for the civil tort of conversion. Although, she was just awarded the $600, rather than the full replacement value of $fourteen,500.  The courtroom reasoned that she should have reasonably mitigated her loss by paying the relatively-low sum of $600. Specially since the rings were so valuable. Because the highly-emotional context in which the man deliberately took and pawned the rings, the man was ordered to pay her punitive amercement of $x,000.

Needless to say, you volition desire to preclude this kind of post-separation anguish and legal hassle. If your Ex is even so holding items that vest to you, make sure to give him or her timely written indication that you intend to recollect them. Ask for a range of convenient times when yous can come by for them.   And you will want to accept steps quickly. The law allows a person who occupies property to dispose of any "abandoned" goods belonging to another.

Unusual Scenarios

The event of damage to your belongings tin arise even if yous and your Ex withal live together under ane roof, though separated. A scenario made all-the-more than prevalent in lite of the economical challenges many unsatisfied couplies face due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  In a example handed down only a month agone called Boyle 5. Stocker,[2] one of the issues was the man's potential responsibleness for sure damage to the woman'south things.  She had come up home from work on diverse occasions to find burns on a lampshade, broken Christmas decorations, broken china, a cracked glass pane in a hutch, and a croaky laptop screen.

About troubling was her return dwelling to discover her pet rooster and a total of seven of her pet chickens dead.  The courtroom considered this every bit office of its disposition on other aspects of their Family dispute. It did so by looking at the overall context of how both former partners behaved toward each other.  The courtroom heard evidence that their human relationship contained petty power struggles and minor acts of calculated impairment to each other's meaningful possessions.

Your Ex could be liable even if the impairment to your things was non done by him or her directly.  In an unusual case called Masur v. Madiros[3]the adult female connected to live in the home owned by the man after they divide up and he moved out.  In what might exist termed a passive-aggressive motion, she permit her dogs cause damage to his abode. She fabricated virtually no endeavour to clean upwardly after them when she finally moved out.  The human was left with the make clean-up and repair bill, amounting to about $4,000.  The court ordered her to reimburse the man for half of this corporeality, noting that she had a general responsibility every bit a pet owner to ensure that her dogs did not do harm to other people's property.

Property

Courtroom Orders Effectually Family Property

If you and your Ex are married and are already involved in Family court proceedings on your fashion to a divorce, you should also know that under section 24(1) of the Ontario Family Law Deed, a courtroom is entitled to make orders that specifically encompass the matrimonial habitation, and the items and possessions that are contained in it.

This ways that if you are the one who left the matrimonial home when y'all split upwardly, then y'all may be able to obtain an order specifically directing your Ex to preserve certain items that belong to you, or directing that your Ex deliver them up to you in a certain way and past a specified borderline.   These kinds of orders are subject to the usual enforcement mechanisms, and so if your Ex fails to abide by the courtroom-mandated directive, and then he or she may be bailiwick to sanctions.

Case Example

This was the scenario in a case called Whyte v. Warren-Whyte[4]the couple had a nasty split when the wife plant out that the husband had been seeing another adult female.  After the hubby moved out, the wife posted unflattering and suggestive pictures of him on her social media, and had engaged in other domestic violence that ultimately netted her 141 days in jail.  Among her means of wreaking vengeance on him was to try to sell a jointly-endemic recreational beach belongings without his knowledge, and to completely destroy a campsite that was located on it.  She also sold some of his property at a m auction, even though she had been specifically ordered by a court to preserve them awaiting a after trial.  The court took all these incidents into account, when fashioning its remedy around the partition of the parties' betrothed property.

Determination

The Carrie Underwood song shows a disgruntled partner going berserk on a cheating Ex's holding.  While this may be forage for many people'south revenge fantasies, information technology tin give ascension to serious repercussions.  Whether yous left your Ex or they left you, it's always best to have the high road if yous are notwithstanding in possession of each other'southward things. If you are in doubtfulness about what to practice, seek the advice of an experienced Family lawyer who volition requite you the right steps to take in your specific scena

[i] 2019 YKSC 56, 2019 CarswellYukon 106, 312 A.C.W.S. (3d) 83, 32 R.F.L. (eighth) 84.

[ii] 2021 ONSC 1565, 2021 CarswellOnt 2692.

[3] [2000] AJ No 1156, 2000 ABQB 676, 273 AR 77, 100 ACWS (3d) 602.

[iv] 2018 NBQB 71, 2018 CarswellNB 108, 293 A.C.West.S. (3d) 806, 7 R.F.L. (8th) 315.

The materials contained in this website are intended to provide full general information and comment only and should not be relied or construed as legal advice or opinion. While we try to continue the information on this web site as up to appointment, accurate and complete every bit reasonably possible, we practice not warrant the completeness, timeliness or accuracy of annihilation contained in this spider web site. The application and impact of laws can vary widely, based on the specific facts involved. For any detail fact situation, we urge you lot to consult an experienced lawyer with any specific legal questions you may have. Your apply of this website doe non constitute or create a lawyer-client human relationship. Should you wish to retain our house, kindly contact our office to gear up up a meeting with a lawyer.