Background: The appellant, 1008718 B.C. Ltd., applied under section 18 of the Commercial Tenancy Act (CTA) for a writ of possession against the respondent, Osiria Welding & Fabrication Ltd., alleging several breaches of the lease.

Legal Arguments/Issues: The landlord alleged that the tenant breached the lease by subletting part of the premises without written consent and conducting unauthorized business operations. The chambers judge declined to grant the relief sought, stating the facts could not be determined on a summary basis, and awarded costs to the respondent. On appeal, the appellant argued that the judge should have exercised jurisdiction under section 21 of the CTA to decide the matter summarily and that pre-trial processes like discovery were inappropriate for the expedited nature of the CTA.

Court's Ruling: The Court of Appeal held that the judge erred in not directing cross-examination on the affidavits and misunderstood the summary procedure mandated by the CTA. The court vacated the lower court’s order and remitted the matter for inquiry under section 21(2) of the CTA.

Costs and Awards: The Court of Appeal ordered each party to bear their own costs of the appeal. The costs of the application in the lower court were left to the discretion of the judge hearing the stage two inquiry.