March 10, 2026
Bad faith efforts to terminate a residential tenancy may lead not only to a failure to evict the tenant. In Ontario, the Landlord and Tenant Board has the power to impose a substantial administrative fine on the landlord for this misconduct.
This has been confirmed by the Divisional Court in EQB v. JOUNG. Among the several roles of the Divisional Court is to hear appeals from the Landlord and Tenant Board.
The tenants settled their dispute with the landlord, but the Board maintained its right to impose a $10,000.00 fine on its own initiative.
The background was that the landlord had mislead the tenants by giving them false information that the property had been sold. It also misled the tenants about their rights to remain even if there was a sale.
The issues at the court were:
- Whether the greater public interest in the imposition of the fine justified the board defending its decision, or whether the appeal should go undefended once the teat’s particular issues were resolved.
- Whether the administrative fine ought to be upheld.
The judge found in favour of the Board on both issues.
The Board submitted that the purpose of an administrative fine is to deter landlords who have shown blatant disregard for the law from repeating similar breaches in the future. Though the fine is levied individually, the imposition of the fine sends a broader message to landlords generally It is payable to the board, not to the tenants. The upper limit of the fine is the same as the Small Claims Court limit, now $50,000.00.
Among the actions found to be bad faith, which might surprise some landlords, was the offer by the landlord to the tenants to pay them money to vacate. This conduct applied not only to the one set of tenants who had applied to the Board but was repeated with 15 tenants. The misconduct resulted in the landlord profiting by over $90,000.00 in one year alone.
The $10,000.00 fine was found to be consistent with the scope of the misconduct.
Having made this point, and been upheld on appeal, fines will likely increase in the future, if this sector follows the pattern in other sectors where administrative fines are imposed.
TAKEAWAYS
- Following the provisions of the Residential Tenancies Act is not optional.
- Non-compliance can be costly.
- The cost of timely legal advice may save higher costs down the road.
WHAT WEILERS LLP CAN DO TO HELP YOU
Although the Landlord and Tenant Board is designed to accommodate parties bringing their own applications without lawyers, if your case involves complex issues of fact or law, the limits on judicial review and appeal suggest that you ought to obtain legal advice before charging off to the Board. This also applies to understanding the mechanics of the Residential Tenancies Act to avoid the need for an application.
At Weilers LLP we have the experience to provide that advice, and further representation if you need it, at a reasonable cost. Give us a call and see if we are the right lawyers for you.