Margolin v Tallari

Tenant wins · Toronto · 2025-09-17

Adjudicator

Susan Priest

Dispute

Damage to Property, Personal Use

Notice

Personal use (N12)

Landlord

J.M.

Tenant

K.T., K.J.

What happened

The Landlord sought a review of a previous order that denied a claim for damages caused by a water leak. The Landlord contended that the original Member erred in finding the leak was due to poor maintenance (grout issues) rather than Tenant negligence. While the review was granted due to a serious error in the initial finding, the subsequent rehearing resulted in the dismissal of the Landlord's claim because the evidence provided (invoices and reports) was considered hearsay and was outweighed by the Tenants' direct testimony.

The ruling

The LTB granted the Landlord's request for review, finding a serious error in the previous order's assessment of maintenance issues. However, upon rehearing the case, the Board dismissed the Landlord's claim for $4,087.72 in damages. The decision was based on the fact that the Landlord relied on hearsay evidence (written reports and invoices) without calling the authors to testify, which was outweighed by the Tenants' direct testimony denying negligence.