Warraich v. Choudhry et al

Split/Other wins · Toronto · 2019-04-29

Adjudicator

Sossin J.

Dispute

Equitable Interest In Property, Rental Arrears

Landlord

A.C., N.Y.

Tenant

S.W.

Landlord rep

Arnold Zweig

Tenant rep

Syed Abid Hussain

What happened

The plaintiff Sarfraz Warraich claims an equitable interest in a residential property owned by the defendants Aftab Choudhry and Nuzha Yasmin. Warraich alleges he invested funds for a 50% share of the property and was to live there while paying carrying costs until it could be renovated and sold. Choudhry denies this arrangement and claims Warraich was only a tenant. The defendants counterclaim for rental arrears and damages from delays in redeveloping the property.

The ruling

The court found that Warraich obtained an equitable interest in the property through a 2012 oral agreement, which was later resolved by a 2016 Trust Agreement to buy out Warraich's interest for $184,500. Warraich is entitled to this amount plus 3.5% interest from September 2, 2016. Warraich no longer has any ongoing interest in the property. Choudhry is entitled to some rental arrears and utility payments not covered by the Trust Agreement.