Lay's Transport Ltd. v. Meadow Lake Consumer's Co-Operative Association Ltd., Trimble (H.M.) & Sons Ltd., Neu and S. & N. Trucking Ltd., (1982) 20 Sask.R. 8 (QB)

• Judge: Grotsky, J.
• Court: Court of Queen's Bench of Saskatchewan (Canada)
• Case Date: September 10, 1982
• Jurisdiction: Saskatchewan
• Citations: (1982), 20 Sask.R. 8 (QB)

Lay's Transport v. Meadow Lake Co-op (1982), 20 Sask.R. 8 (QB)

MLB headnote and full text

Lay's Transport Ltd. v. Meadow Lake Consumer's Co-Operative Association Limited, H.M. Trimble & Sons Ltd., Neu and S. & N. Trucking Ltd.

(No. 64 A.D. 1981)

Indexed As: Lay's Transport Ltd. v. Meadow Lake Consumer's Co-Operative Association Ltd., Trimble (H.M.) & Sons Ltd., Neu and S. & N. Trucking Ltd.

Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench

Judicial Centre of Saskatoon

Grotsky, J.

September 10, 1982.

Summary:

A trucking and transportation business brought an action against the defendants for damages suffered to its vehicles when unleaded gasoline was supplied to the plaintiff instead of diesel fuel.

The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench allowed the plaintiff's action.

Damages - Topic 2

Definitions - What constitutes damages - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench held that the following expenses were recoverable, if at all, only as costs and not as damages: (1) fees (legal or accounting) and disbursements paid in order to advance a lawsuit (2) expenses incurred by the president of a litigant company in travelling to an examination for discovery and (3) "per diem costs during trial", namely, time spent by witnesses at court during and awaiting trial - See paragraphs 45 to 48, 55 to 56.

Damages - Topic 1400

Special damages - General - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench defined special damages and contrasted special and general damages - See paragraphs 62 to 63.

Damages - Topic 1425

Special damages - Loss of management time - The president of the plaintiff trucking business was forced to spend extra time and work arranging replacement vehicles after the plaintiff's units were damaged by contaminated fuel supplied by the defendants - The president was also obliged to travel to meet with the plaintiff's solicitors to prepare for litigation - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench awarded the plaintiff damages against the defendants for loss of management time - See paragraph 49.

Damages - Topic 1427

Special damages - Office overhead - The plaintiff company's office staff spent approximately 100 hours assisting the company president in preparing for litigation - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench awarded the successful plaintiff damages for additional office overhead - See paragraph 55.

Damages - Topic 5832

Contracts - Sale of goods - Breach by seller - Measure of damages - The defendants delivered unleaded gasoline to the plaintiff trucking business instead of diesel fuel - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench assessed the damages to be awarded the plaintiff for damage caused by fuel contamination to its trucks - See paragraphs 38 to 66.

Damages - Topic 5844

Contracts - Sale of goods - Breach by seller - Loss of anticipated profits - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench stated that on a claim for damages for loss of profit, the plaintiff must establish lost net profit, not gross profit or lost revenue - The court set out an equation to calculate loss of a profit-earning chattel - See paragraph 57.

Evidence - Topic 2252

Special modes of proof - Judicial notice - Particular matters - Location of municipalities - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench took judicial notice of the fact that Meadow Lake is a small rural Saskatchewan community - See paragraph 38.

Interest - Topic 5302

Interest as damages - Interest on payment of money or debt withheld - Improper withholding - What constitutes - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench refused to award interest in an action for unliquidated damages, because there was no debt owing until liability was established - See paragraphs 50 to 52.

Practice - Topic 7064

Costs - Party and party costs - Counsel fee - Articled clerks - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench held that legal fees for an articling student attending at trial could not be recovered as costs or damages - See paragraph 56.

Sale of Goods - Topic 4106

Conditions and warranties - Implied or statutory terms as to quality or fitness - Fitness or suitability of goods - The defendants delivered unleaded gasoline to the plaintiff trucking business instead of the diesel fuel which was ordered - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench held that the defendants failed to supply goods fit for the plaintiff's purposes, where the defendants knew or ought to have known the purpose for which the fuel was ordered - See paragraphs 20, 38.

Cases Noticed:

N.A.S. Management Services Ltd. v. Sivyer Steel Corporation, [1981] Sask. D. 3463-02, appld. [para. 41].

Vancouver Ice & Storage Company v. British Columbia Electric Railway Company, [1927] 1 W.W.R. 631, appld. [para. 42].

Ross v. Caunters, [1979] 3 All E.R. 580, appld. [para. 46].

Re City of Halifax and Paton (1965), 25 D.L.R.(2d) 103, refd to. [para. 47].

Prince Albert Pulp Company Ltd. et al. v. Foundation Company of Canada Limited, [1976] 4 W.W.R. 586; 8 N.R. 181, appld. [para. 50].

McDonald v. Can. Utilities (1977), 6 A.R. 1, refd to. [para. 50].

Evergreen Irrigation v. Belgium Farms (1976), 3 A.R. 248, refd to. [para. 50].

Dominion Chain Co. Ltd. v. Eastern Construction Co. Ltd. et al. (1974), 46 D.L.R.(3d) 28, refd to. [para. 50].

Athabaska Airways v. Sask. Gov't. Airways (1958), 25 W.W.R.(N.S.) 401, refd to. [para. 50].

Airtemp Corporation v. Chrysler Airtemp Canada (1980-81), 11 B.L.R. 47, refd to. [para. 51].

N.T.J.B. Investments Ltd. v. Saskatchewan, Province of (1980), 2 Sask.R. 336, refd to. [para. 56].

Authors and Works Noticed:

Halsbury's Laws of England (4th Ed.), vol. 12, para. 1108, n. 11 [para. 45].

Dunn, Robert L., Recovery of Damages for Lost Profits (1978), p. 159, para. 6.3 [para. 58].

Counsel:

D.W. Beaubier, Q.C., for the plaintiff;

P. Foley, for the defendants.

This action was heard before GROTSKY, J., of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench, Judicial Centre of Saskatoon. The decision of GROTSKY, J., was delivered at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, on September 10, 1982: