What is the test for contempt of court for failing to obey a court order?

Ontario, Canada


The following excerpt is from Ontario Securities Commission v. Peter Robinson and George Schwartz, 2010 ONSC 225 (CanLII):

As my brother Justice Cumming wrote in Sussex Group v. Fangeat, [2003] O.J. No. 3348, [2003] O.T.C. 781 (S.C.J.), at paras. 50 and 51: It is integral to a free and democratic society like Canada that citizens act pursuant to and under the rule of law. Court orders in force must be respected and followed. The deliberate failure to obey a court order strikes at the very heart of the administration of justice. This includes court orders relating to commercial matters such as in the case at hand. If someone can simply ignore or finesse his way around a court order, it will tend to add uncertainties and risks, with their consequential inefficiencies and additional costs, as well as causing unfairness, with its consequential inequities and additional costs, to the commercial marketplace. It is commonly recognized that the rule of law is essential in a democratic society for the protection of civil liberties and human rights. It should be evident that the rule of law is just as essential for the protection of citizens in their commercial affairs. And just as white collar crime is crime, white collar contempt is contempt. [page457] If the remedies a court directs to be put in place through its orders can be ignored with impunity, the road to civil anarchy is close at hand. The thin veil of civilization that cloaks our community through the rule of law is fragile and in need of constant protection.

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