On March 19, 2020, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice suspended the eviction of residents from their homes, pursuant to eviction orders issued by the Landlord and Tenant Board or writs of possession, during the COVID-19 pandemic, unless ordered otherwise in an urgent motion.
On the same day, the Landlord and Tenant Board suspended all hearings related to eviction applications and suspended the issuance of eviction orders, unless the matter related to an urgent issue such as an illegal act or a serious safety threat.
Urgent Eviction Order or Urgent Enforcement?
1. If the landlord requires an urgent eviction order, then the landlord should proceed to file an urgent application with the Landlord and Tenant Board.
2. If the landlord already has an eviction order (or writ of possession) and requires urgent enforcement, then an urgent motion should be made to the Superior Court of Justice under Rule 60.17 of the Rules of Civil Procedure.
Urgent Enforcement Considerations
A recent decision of the Divisional Court, Chalich v. Alhatam, 2020 ONSC 2569, provides insight into when the court will enforce an eviction order on an urgent basis. In this case, the landlord brought an urgent motion to enforce an eviction order because of an imminent closing date for the sale of the property. It was originally agreed that the tenant would vacate the premises and move into his new apartment before the closing date of April 30, 2020. However, the tenant was advised by his new landlord that the new apartment was not available until June 1, 2020 because the existing tenant could not move out during COVID-19 and the new landlord could not evict the existing tenant.
Under Rule 60.17, the landlord may bring a motion for directions from a judge where a question arises in relation to the measures to be taken by the sheriff in carrying out an eviction order. The landlord argued that he had already obtained several extensions of the closing date and if vacant possession of the premises was not provided then he was at risk of breaching the contract. The court weighed the evidence, including that both parties were victims of COVID-19 circumstance, and found that the landlord’s possible risk of breaching the contract was far outweighed by the harm in forcing the tenant (and his wife and two young children) into the streets. The urgent enforcement of eviction orders during COVID-19 must be true emergencies involving illegal acts or serious threats to health. The court stated:
… the clear intent of the Chief Justice’s eviction moratorium was, during the pandemic, to prevent evictions even though the moratorium could be expected to cause significant economic disruption and adverse financial effects … the primary interest protected is ensuring that everyone stays home and stays healthy during the lockdown period.
However, not all was lost for the landlord. The tenant was ordered to correspond with the new landlord throughout May 2020 to confirm whether the unit would ready by June 1, 2020. If the new landlord did not confirm that the new apartment was ready by May 15, 2020, then the landlord could bring a further motion for directions. It should be noted that the outcome of any further motion may be different depending on further evidence filed by the landlord in respect to the purchaser’s refusal to provide an extension of the closing date, etc.
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