- by John Tamming

Apparently the Town of South Bruce Peninsula solicitors are suggesting that the judgement is somehow deficient in that it fails to spell out the precise eastern boundary of Saugeen First Nation.

There is no material ambiguity in the judgement.

Paragraph 5 of the judgement reads:

"The excluded coastline from (and including) Lot 26 to the approximate mid-way point of Lot 31, Concession D, in the Town of South Bruce Peninsula, and lying to the west of Lakeshore Boulevard North, Sauble Beach (the “Disputed Beach”), is reserve land that was never surrendered by Saugeen."

Vella J may not have specified precisely where to pound the stake for the eastern point of the Disputed Beach but this judgement clearly states that Lakeshore Boulevard is not captured; nor would any properties to the east of that road be captured.

There may have to be a clean-up addendum for the precise location of the east post but that is hardly unusual for judgements of this length involving property where potentially a further survey is filed on consent.

South Bruce Peninsula spent $1.3m (approximately) on legal fees on the piping plover case. It lost every single step (from the original hearing to the Divisional Court to the Court of Appeal) and virtually every single argument. In the beach case, this same firm which helped the town on the plover case has now lost every single argument it advanced here too. All of them.

The judgement lists no fewer than five lawyers from that firm were representing the Town. In 31 years of litigation practice, I don't believe I have ever seen that many lawyers on the record for a single client. I have a FOI request in for the legal costs of this battle but I assume it will not be pretty (I cottage in the area and am not disinterested in how the Town spends its taxes).

And the Town's own costs are only half the story. We have a loser pay system. The Town's rejection of the mediated settlement a decade ago triggered this trial. Vella J. will have every right to force the Town to pay the legal bill of SON and a substantial slice of that of certain of the co-defendants.

Hang on to your hats. I predict the numbers will be ugly, very ugly.