HIGHLIGHTS
* The British Columbia Court of Appeal has overturned the decision of a Justice of the British Columbia Court of Queen's Bench who granted the petition of the British Columbia Milk Marketing Board to direct a milk processor to pay funds due pursuant to the Milk Marketing Board's Consolidated Order. The funds had been withheld by the processor to offset alleged damages occurred because the Board had supplied contaminated milk. The chambers Justice had also dismissed the milk processor's application to convert the petition to an action, and had refused to permit the processor to add the two milk producers who had supplied the milk as third parties to the action. As a result of the Court of Appeal's decision the Milk Marketing Board now has to sue in debt to recover the withheld funds (rather than being able to rely on the mandatory provisions of the Consolidated Order) and the milk processor is permitted to raise Sale of Goods Act defences with respect to the contaminated milk, and to seek leave to third party the producers who had supplied the contaminated milk through the Marketing Board. (British Columbia (Milk Marketing Board) v. Saputo Products Canada G.P., CALN/2017-052, [2017] B.C.J. No. 1244, British Columbia Court of Appeal)
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