10 Jul 2023
Bank of Montreal v. Saidani
In the case of Bank of Montreal ("BMO") v. Saidani dated July 10, 2023, the plaintiff, BMO, had obtained a noting in default and default judgment against the Defendant, Peter Harvey. However, Mr. Harvey sought to set aside these judgments.
The background of the case revealed that BMO had brought an action against Mr. Harvey and another Defendant, Ilyes Saidani, to enforce guarantees on an overdraft credit facility for Sirius Power Corp. Mr. Harvey was the Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer of Sirius, and both Defendants had given personal guarantees for the credit facility.
During the hearing, Mr. Harvey objected to BMO relying on certain redacted portions of his email marked "without prejudice," claiming settlement privilege. However, the court ruled that a specific sentence from the email showing when he learned of BMO's claim should be admitted into evidence to determine any possible misrepresentation.
The court granted Mr. Harvey's motion to set aside the noting in default and default judgment, allowing him to proceed with his defense.