A Toronto senior said he missed a court date related to his impending eviction because he was hospitalized and recovering from a heart attack.

But an appeals court ultimately ruled in the landlord’s favor, and the case continued, accusing the tenant and the sisters who shared the apartment of knowing how to “game the system.” .

Now, the pair are raising concerns about what they call an “unfair” decision in the face of an eviction scheduled for today.

Kathleen Finlay told CP24: “I don’t understand how a court could be so devoid of basic compassion.” “So this appears to have been designed for punitive purposes.”

Kathleen Finlay and her brother John claim they faced numerous problems with their rental agreement after moving into a downtown Toronto apartment during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. There is. They say the unit was not as advertised. There was no hot water, ventilation problems filled the bedrooms with a foul odor, and unfinished repairs created safety hazards, among other allegations in court documents filed by tenants.

These problems have affected John so severely that he has become disabled and was diagnosed with heart disease earlier this year, his sister said.

Additionally, Kathleen says they have “deprived her of quality of life.”

“This apartment building has a series of scary ramps that make it really difficult for him to get in and out. He can only go through the basement and has to use a walker to get up and down the ramps and around. It has to be,” Kathleen said in an interview with CP24.

Although the apartment itself was not advertised as pedestrian or wheelchair friendly, the brothers were angry and frustrated by other questionable issues.

Kathleen says that’s why she stopped paying rent two months after moving in. She believes the unit was in breach of the Rental Accommodations Act (RTA) as it did not match the way it was advertised online and ultimately created difficult living conditions for them. Especially her younger brother.

The couple accumulated more than $150,000 in rent arrears. However, he claimed that his living conditions caused damages that exceeded that amount.

Medical evidence is unreliable: judge

The brothers stopped paying rent in September 2021. By November, Kathleen said, the property management company began taking legal action against the brothers.

Around the same time, Kathleen said her brother started having medical problems. She said that by January 2024, she was diagnosed with heart disease. As a result, the brothers requested a stay of the lawsuit, which was ultimately denied.

The court’s decision granting the landlord possession of the apartment stated:[John’s medical condition] Claims have been made repeatedly over the course of these proceedings, and courts have noted at various points that the claims have never been accompanied by reliable medical evidence. The claim is being made again without any proof. ”

The tenant appealed this decision. On Friday, the two were scheduled to appear in the Court of Appeals today following a motion by the landlord seeking permission to proceed with enforcement of the court order and take possession of the apartment.

But Kathleen said her brother suffered a heart attack while in the hospital emergency room that morning.

Kathleen provided CP24 with a document she described as a note from a medical professional outlining John’s condition. The April memo suggests that the stress of the legal process and eviction put John at risk of cardiac arrest, but the documents do not confirm that John suffered a heart attack.

The Finleys’ request to postpone Friday’s hearing was denied by a motion judge.

Tenant “System Abuse” Judge

According to the Court of Appeal’s ruling, this is not the first time the pair have avoided court proceedings. Rather, it is the latest in a long line of lawsuits in which the Finleys allege medical reasons for not attending, the newspaper said.

The medical certificate was sent to a judge in early April, and the pair were granted a short 10-day travel extension. They remained in the unit and the ruling said it was an example of how tenants were “abusing the system”.

“After the Finlays stopped paying their rent, the unfortunate ‘cat and mouse’ game that is common among unscrupulous tenants began. The Finlays are among the most skilled players who know how to ‘game the system.’ ” says the judgment. “…Indeed, the Finleys have gone before this court once before in this case, and in a decision awarding costs on a waiver of appeal, reported in 2024 ONCA 153, the court held that the actions of the “tenant” , pointed out that it appeared to be an abuse of the court’s rights. The Finlay family’s strategy throughout…the frivolous, persistent and abusive nature of this appeal in particular continues as well as the upholding of Black J during the appeal and the costs award made by this court. Legal proceedings – 33 legal cases. ”

The brothers did not have lawyers at the time and were representing themselves.

“I was trying to fight in court, my brother was fighting for his life, and they were able to take advantage of that opportunity and use us to get something in front of a judge really quickly. And this is the result,” Kathleen said. .

Kathleen said her brother has since left the hospital to pack his things.

Kathleen said there are no plans for John to return to the hospital at this time. She said she was considering medical assistance as one of her options to “die with dignity.”

“This is truly unfair and punitive, and I can’t find any other way to describe it.”

They were ordered to pay more than $150,000 in rent incurred through early March 2024, in addition to bonding for previous filing and appeal costs. The total amount is over $250,000.

Property management company Hanna Properties of One Clarendon referred a request for comment to the company’s attorney, Sanji Sood.

In response he said: [Court of Appeal] The decision itself speaks for itself. ”