On July 15, 2021, Shane Ross was sentenced to 90 days jail for civil contempt where there was no criminal prosecution. Shane Ross is to next appear in Court on November 1, 2021, to report to the Court his efforts to purge his contempt, determine if a further punishment will be imposed, and to assess the costs against him for the contempt proceedings.
Although this is rare in civil law, Justice Graeme Mew believed that the nature and extent of Mr. Ross’ repeated breaches mandate a custodial sentence.
Ross was a contractor who owned a company titled Standard Building and Standard Paving operating in Belleville, Ontario. In November 2020, Justice Mew held that Ross engaged in deceptive and fraudulent conduct both personally and through his companiesA more detailed description of the previous judgement can be found here.
The Court issued an interim “Mareva” injunction in December that same year. The Mareva injunction is known to be an exceptional and drastic remedy in which it froze all assets of Ross, including all the funds that Ross swindled. Ross breached the Mareva injunction order on numerous occasions.
Mr. Ross continued to conduct business, he was operating through different company names such as “Barber Paving and Construction Inc.” and “Culloden Properties Corporation” and “Pinnacle Construction Limited” located in Nova Scotia. His companies entered into contracts, there were several transactions of money, properties were managed, renovated, and bought or sold.
Ross also had bank activity with multiple corporations. The Mareva injunction orders disclosure of all bank accounts. Despite the order of this court requiring disclosure, Ross operated other bank accounts while cashing cheques and re-filling a prepaid credit card at Money Mart. Ross also used a Canadian Tire Mastercard in the same way that a personal bank account or debit card would have been.
Justice Mew held that “Mr. Ross has serially, repeatedly, shamelessly and unapologetically flouted the court’s orders.” Judge Mew further stated that “I am left in no reasonable doubt that Mr. Ross has been dishonest and deceitful in his statement of assets, in the monthly financial updates that he has provided, and throughout his examination in aid of execution. “
As a result of Ross’s breach of the Mareva injunction on numerous occasions, Ross was incarcerated for contempt of court. The full decision of the Court’s judgment of contempt against Shane Ross and his companies is available here.
