Cooper v. Hobart

Cooper v. Hobart
Supreme Court of Canada
Hearing: June 20, 2001 Judgment: November 16, 2001
Full case name: Mary Francis Cooper v. Robert J. Hobart and Her Majesty the Queen in right of the Province of British Columbia Citations: [2001] 3 S.C.R. 537, 2001 SCC 79 Docket No.: 27880 Ruling: Appeal dismissed
Holding
A Registrar does not owe a duty of care to investors
Court membership
Chief Justice: Beverley McLachlin Puisne Justices: Claire L'Heureux-Dubé, Charles Gonthier, Frank Iacobucci, John C. Major, Michel Bastarache, Ian Binnie, Louise Arbour, Louis LeBel
Reasons given
Unanimous reason by: McLachlin C.J. and Major J.

Cooper v. Hobart, [2001] 3 S.C.R. 537, 2001 SCC 79, is a Supreme Court of Canada case that redefined the Anns test adopted in Kamloops v. Nielsen to establish a duty of care in civil tort cases.

Background

Eron was a mortgage broker under the Mortgage Broker's Act. Cooper had advanced money to Eron. Eron’s mortgage license was suspended by Hobart acting in his official capacity as Mortgage Broker Registrar under the Act.

Cooper alleges that Hobart breached a duty of care that he allegedly owed to her and other investors because he had been aware of the serious violations of the Act committed by Eron, and not suspended its license soon enough. The Registrar of Mortgage Brokers had become aware of Eron on August of 1996 and did not suspend his licence until October of 1997.

At trial the Registrar was found to have owed a duty of care to the investors. In appeal, the Court overturned the verdict on grounds that there was no sufficient proximity.

Reasoning of the Court

McLachlin and Major found that if there is no existing category that would create a duty of care, the plaintiff must show proximity, a close and direct relationship with the defendant. In this case, the statute imposes no such duty on the Registrar. While the losses to the plaintiff were foreseeable, proceeding to a policy analysis is unnecessary.

Aftermath and precedence

This case concerns pure economic loss. It is an application of the Anns-Kamloops Test.

See also

• List of Supreme Court of Canada cases (McLachlin Court)

External links

• Full text of Supreme Court of Canada decision available at LexUM and CanLII