Executive Summary: Key Legal and Evidentiary Issues

• The central dispute concerns Mr. Rayan Hashem's opposition to a bill of costs of $26,672.51 filed by The Canada Life Assurance Company following the dismissal of his underlying disability insurance claim.
• Compliance with Article 14 of the Rules of the Court of Québec was at issue, as the defendant failed to file its expert's fee invoices during trial.
• Quantification of Dr. Paul-André Lafleur's testimony fees was contested, as the bill claimed $15,000 for three days of testimony when the record showed he testified for only two half-days.
• Recovery of the $5,000 claimed for the expert's attendance at non-testimony portions of the trial was disallowed due to the defendant's failure to file the invoices at trial.
• Under Article 344 of the Code of Civil Procedure, the court reviewed and revised the clerk's homologation of the bill of costs dated May 19, 2026.
• Mr. Hashem's personal health and financial circumstances were raised in opposition but could not serve as grounds to revise the underlying costs award.

Facts of the case

This matter concerns an opposition to a bill of costs following a judgment rendered on January 12, 2026 by Justice Karine Beaudry (2026 QCCQ 41), in which the Court of Québec dismissed the originating application of Rayan Hashem against The Canada Life Assurance Company. In the underlying action, Mr. Hashem had claimed $67,133.28 from the defendant in connection with a disability insurance certificate. The court dismissed his claim with costs. On May 8, 2026, the defendant notified Mr. Hashem of its bill of costs totalling $26,672.51, which was subsequently homologated by the clerk on May 19, 2026. Mr. Hashem filed an opposition to the bill of costs, and the matter came before Justice Luc Huppé of the Court of Québec on May 22, 2026.

Contractual and procedural provisions at issue

The court's analysis engaged several key provisions. Article 339 of the Code of Civil Procedure defines the composition of costs of justice, which include filing fees, service fees, witness allowances, and expert fees — the latter covering report preparation, testimony preparation, and time spent testifying or attending the hearing where useful. Article 340 governs which party bears costs, and Article 344 grants the party condemned to pay costs the right to oppose the other party's bill of costs, with the clerk's decision subject to judicial review. Critically, Article 14 of the Rules of the Court of Québec requires a party producing an expert report to also file the expert's curriculum vitae and, if costs are to be claimed, an up-to-date fee account at the time of trial.

Court's reasoning and analysis

The defendant's bill of costs included $178.75 in filing fees, $43.76 for service of the list of exhibits and documents, and $26,450.00 in expert fees attributable to Dr. Paul-André Lafleur, a psychiatrist. The court found no issue with the first two items. The expert fees, however, required close scrutiny. The defendant had not filed Dr. Lafleur's invoices during trial, in breach of Article 14 of the Rules of the Court of Québec. While the court acknowledged that such a breach does not automatically forfeit the right to claim expert fees, it held that the party in breach must bear the consequences of that failure — not the party ordered to pay costs.

Dr. Lafleur's first invoice, dated October 20, 2023, claimed $4,825 before taxes for preparation of his report. His second invoice, dated September 19, 2025 — the last day of trial — claimed $1,625 before taxes for trial preparation and $20,000 before taxes, at a rate of $5,000 per day, for his testimony and days reserved for that testimony. The defendant's bill of costs described the expert fees as: $4,825 for report preparation; $1,625 for testimony preparation; $15,000 for testimony; and $5,000 for assistance at the hearing. The court noted, however, that the trial record showed Dr. Lafleur testified for only two half-days — beginning his examination-in-chief at 3:12 p.m. on September 17, 2025, completing it one hour later, and concluding his cross-examination by noon on September 18, 2025 — not three full days as implied by the $15,000 claim. Applying Dr. Lafleur's own hourly rate of $650, the court reduced the testimony fee to $5,000. Additionally, because the defendant had failed to file the invoices at trial, Justice Beaudry had no opportunity to assess the utility of Dr. Lafleur's attendance at non-testimony portions of the proceedings, including the pleadings. Accordingly, the court found the defendant could not recover the $5,000 claimed for the expert's general assistance at the hearing.

Mr. Hashem also raised his health condition and financial situation as grounds for opposition, but the court held it had no authority to revisit the underlying costs award made in the January 12, 2026 judgment; its role at this stage was limited to verifying the conformity of the amounts claimed.

Ruling and overall outcome

Justice Huppé revised the clerk's homologation of May 19, 2026 and partially granted Mr. Hashem's opposition. The court homologated the defendant's bill of costs at a reduced total of $11,672.51, comprising $178.75 in filing fees, $43.76 in service fees, and $11,450.00 in expert fees — broken down as $4,825 for the report, $1,625 for testimony preparation, and $5,000 for testimony. The order was made without costs. The Canada Life Assurance Company was the partially successful party, recovering $11,672.51 of the $26,672.51 originally claimed.