Final order

An order that disposes of an issue in a lawsuit is a final order. Thus, even a pleadings motion may be a final order if it disposes of an issue. Today's Court of Appeal decision in Ontario Securities Commission v. McLaughlin, 2009 ONCA 280 sets this point out nicely.

[7]               Both parties submit that the order of the motion judge is a final order. I agree. An order that conclusively disposes of an issue raised by way of defence and thereby deprives a defendant of a substantive right is a final order: Ball v. Donais (1993), 13 O.R. (3d) 322 ( C.A. ). Thus, an order dismissing a motion to plead matters in defence has been held to be a final order: see 385925 Ontario Ltd. v. American Life Insurance (1985), 51 O.R. (2d) 382 (H.C.). In this case, by way of example, Cumming J.'s order refused McLaughlin's request to plead that the plaintiffs' claims should be dismissed because they do not have clean hands or because they were acting pursuant to an illegal conspiracy. The effect of the order is to finally determine that those defences are not available to McLaughlin.
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