Whatever happened to... Antrim truck Ltd. and public nuisances.

AuthorBowal, Peter

Background

Gail Cameron was brought up in the restaurant and accounting businesses. Her husband Jack had a strong trucking background. In June 1978, the couple had acquired Cedar Service Centre on 12 acres of land located on the former Highway 17 west of Ottawa from Gail's mother. They built a tire shop in 1980 and carried on business for motorists passing by. What became Antrim Truck was a great location with good access from the former Trans-Canada highway.

In 1986, the Camerons purchased 10,000 square feet of land, where they built a 10-bay workshop, a restaurant and truck fuel islands. The business, which by now included a Kenworth truck franchise in Pembroke, flourished. A gift shop, gas bar, offices, truck sales and more were added over the years. They won awards for cleanest washrooms and service. By 2003, with 100 employees, they were generating annual gross revenues of over $15 million.

But Antrim Truck faced one big problem. When they purchased the property in 1978, the Ontario transportation minister warned the Camerons that a new highway would be constructed near Highway 17 in the future.

Facts

In 2004, Ontario opened a new section of Highway 417 which ran parallel to Highway 17. As the Camerons feared, motorists did not have direct access to their truck stop anymore.

The transportation ministry offered signage on the new Highway 417 to facilitate the exit to Antrim, but the Camerons never replied. By mid-January of 2005, the Antrim Truck business was closed. It was no longer viable due to the new alignment of Highway 417, the bypass of the property and the inadequate access offered.

Lawsuit

Antrim Truck Ltd. claimed $8,224,671 in damages for injurious affection (based on the tort of nuisance) under the Expropriations Act, RSO 1990, c E.26. This was the cost of Antrim's relocation and the construction of new premises.

In 2013, a unanimous Supreme Court of Canada delivered judgment on Antrim Truck Centre Ltd. v. Ontario [2013] 1 SCR 594 in which the Camerons were awarded $393,000 as compensation for their loss of business and market value in the land. Although the damages were significantly reduced, Antrim did win the final appeal and Ontario was ordered to pay Antrim's court costs.

Injurious Affection

The common law of injurious affection has developed over the years and the concepts of right of access, injurious affection, and nuisance are used interchangeably. Under expropriations legislation, compensation must be awarded for...

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