·  Main Issue:

• Defendant Milton Kiehlbauch sought to set aside a default judgment from 2019, ordering him to pay $2,208,844 in relation to a fraud claim dating back to 2011.

·  Background:

• The fraud action began in 2011. Kiehlbauch was noted in default in 2013 but was unaware of the judgment until 2021, when enforcement actions began.
• Kiehlbauch made multiple unsuccessful attempts to halt the enforcement, including blocking the sale of his house.

·  Legal Arguments:

• Stuart Financial argued that Kiehlbauch’s application was barred by res judicata (issue estoppel), as he had previously applied to set aside the judgment in four different proceedings.
• The court considered whether Kiehlbauch was estopped from bringing the current application, given the history of previous applications that did not fully address the default judgment.

·  Court’s Decision:

• Justice M.H. Hollins ruled that neither issue estoppel nor cause of action estoppel applied. Despite previous proceedings, the issue of setting aside the default judgment had not been fully addressed.
• Kiehlbauch was granted permission to argue the merits of setting aside the judgment, as he had never received a proper hearing on the matter.

·  Outcome:

• The court reserved costs and seized itself of the case for future hearings on the application to set aside the default judgment.