Schell v. Clarke

Tenant wins · Wingham · 2020-11-26

Adjudicator

Backhouse J.

Dispute

Illegal Rent Increase

Landlord

M.C.

Tenant

T.S.

Landlord rep

Philip Cornish

Tenant rep

Lucas Gindin

What happened

The tenant appealed a Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) decision that dismissed her claim for reimbursement of monies allegedly paid due to an illegal rent increase. The LTB had ruled that there was an express agreement to the increase between the landlord and tenant, which was therefore not an illegal charge. The Divisional Court allowed the appeal and referred the matter back to the LTB for reconsideration in light of new case law.

The ruling

The Divisional Court allowed the tenant's appeal of the LTB decision and referred the matter back to a new LTB Member. The new hearing is to determine whether the parties and premises changed sufficiently under the written agreement to meet the exceptions set out in the Honsberger case. If not, the LTB is to determine the amount owing for an illegal rent increase and whether the limitation period under s.135.1(2) of the RTA applies.