Executive Summary: Key Legal and Evidentiary Issues

• Determination of whether the Superior Court of Québec or the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL) had jurisdiction.

• Analysis of whether the claim related to civil fault or fell within the exclusive scope of a residential lease dispute.

• Interpretation of a prior settlement agreement and its exception clause for property damage claims.

• Consideration of the nature and origin of the alleged damages—whether due to flooding or negligent moving.

• Jurisdictional limits under Article 28 of the Loi sur le Tribunal administratif du logement (LTAL).

• Role of the Court in declining jurisdiction and referring matters exclusively covered by administrative tribunals.

Facts and procedural background

In Mohamed v. 9273-7071 Québec inc., 2025 QCCQ 1218, the plaintiff, Mohamed Hussein Amin Mohamed, was a tenant in a residential apartment later deemed uninhabitable by municipal authorities. The property was owned by 9273-7071 Québec inc., and Georges Samaan acted as the company's representative. After vacating the unit on November 3, 2022, Mr. Mohamed alleged that his belongings were mishandled during storage by the landlord and sustained damage either during the move or from water infiltration.

Previously, Mr. Mohamed had obtained a judgment from the Tribunal administratif du logement (TAL) ordering the landlord to carry out repairs. Later disputes led to a comprehensive settlement between the parties, which was homologated by the TAL on November 30, 2023. That agreement included a release of all claims arising from their landlord-tenant relationship, except for claims arising from damage to Mr. Mohamed’s belongings—only if such damage occurred during the move, not due to flooding.

In 2024, Mr. Mohamed filed a civil claim seeking $50,000: $30,000 for property damage, $10,000 for moral damages, and $10,000 in punitive damages. The defendants contested the Court’s jurisdiction and sought dismissal or transfer of the case to the TAL.

Jurisdictional analysis and legal reasoning

The Court analyzed whether the case belonged under the civil jurisdiction of the Québec Court or fell within the exclusive jurisdiction of the TAL under Article 28(1) of the Loi sur le Tribunal administratif du logement (LTAL). According to recent jurisprudence from the Québec Court of Appeal (Coopérative d’habitation Clair de Lune and 955 René-Lévesque Est c. Jetté), all claims arising from a residential lease relationship, provided they fall under the monetary threshold, must be heard by the TAL, even when they involve allegations of civil fault or Charter violations.

Though the plaintiff’s lawyer framed the dispute as a tort action for negligence, the Court found that the substance of the dispute remained firmly rooted in the landlord-tenant relationship. The damages in question involved events that occurred in the context of the landlord’s handling of the tenant’s property, following the lease’s termination. The claim fell well within the TAL’s monetary jurisdiction.

The Court also noted that the prior TAL settlement had already contemplated the claim now being advanced and had carved out a specific exception, further reinforcing that the TAL was the appropriate forum to assess whether the damage stemmed from negligent moving or from the water leak.

Final ruling and outcome

The Court of Québec declined jurisdiction and referred the matter to the Tribunal administratif du logement, finding that the entire dispute was a continuation of the parties' landlord-tenant relationship and thus squarely within the TAL’s exclusive domain.

The Court therefore:

• Granted the defendants' request to refer the case to the TAL.

• Declined jurisdiction under Article 28 LTAL.

• Ordered the case transferred, with costs against Mr. Mohamed.

This case reinforces the exclusive role of the TAL in adjudicating all disputes tied to residential leases in Québec, including civil claims framed as torts, where the facts stem directly from the tenancy.