 Here’s what you need to know to get the day started: | | | He won $20K in small claims court after suing a shady contractor — 7 years later he's still trying to collect | | |  | Nova Scotia small claims court awarded Peter Dobson almost $21,000 when he sued his former contractor Nelson Larry Grosse in 2016. More than seven years later, Dobson says he hasn't seen a dime. (Pat Callaghan/CBC) | | | Peter Dobson hoped collecting on his win in small claims court would be a slam dunk.
After all, he had it in black and white — a judgment saying the contractor he'd hired to build a second-storey addition on his Nova Scotia home owed him almost $20,000 for failing to finish the job.
Seven years later, Dobson is still trying to get his money.
Legal experts warn that small claims court wins don't mean the plaintiffs will get any money, especially when the defendants refuse to pay.
"I do not have any faith whatsoever that we'll be able to collect money," Dobson told Go Public. "When you're dealing with an individual like this … small claims court is totally ineffective."
In late 2014 Dobson hired Nelson Grosse and his company, which at the time was called Grosse Contracting, to build a second-storey addition to his Lake Echo, N.S., home — a $117,500 job according to the statement of claim Dobson filed with the court.
Dobson says after a couple of months, the work came to an abrupt stop and the contractor didn't answer his calls. That's when Dobson hired other companies to finish the work.
He says in November 2015 he decided to sue his former contractor to force him to pay what he owed.
And that's what the court did in May 2016, ordering Grosse (who also goes by Larry Nelson Grosse) to pay Dobson almost $21,000 for the unfinished work, including court fees.
All these years later, Dobson says he hasn't seen a dime. "We never heard anything from him," he said. | | | | | Canadian tennis stars beat Italy to capture country's 1st Billie Jean King Cup | | |  | (Manu Fernandez/The Associated Press) | | | | Marina Stakusic, left, and Leylah Fernandez, second from right, hold the trophy after winning the Billie Jean King Cup finals in La Cartuja stadium on Sunday in Seville, Spain. Read more on Canada's win here. | | | | | | | | | In brief | | | One-time Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard, who was accused of attacking five women in the private bedroom suite of his downtown Toronto office building, was found guilty by a Toronto jury on Sunday of four counts of sexual assault. He was acquitted of one of five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement. Nygard, 82, who wore a black parka in court, didn't appear to show any emotion as the verdict was handed down on the jurors' fifth day of deliberations. Outside the courthouse, Shannon Moroney, a therapist who worked with four of the five accusers, said she received a message from one of the women, who said the verdict was not just for her, but that it should be shared with all survivors of sexual assault. "We did this for everyone, not only for ourselves," Moroney quoted the woman as saying. Nygard's defence lawyer, Brian Greenspan, said "the jury has spoken" but he was considering an appeal. Read the full story here.
The World Health Organization said Sunday that the largest hospital in Gaza has ceased to function and fatalities among patients are rising, as a fierce Israeli assault continues in the Hamas-controlled strip. Hospitals in the north of the Palestinian enclave, including the Al-Shifa complex, are blockaded by Israeli forces and barely able to care for those inside, with three newborns dead and more at risk from power outages amid intense fighting nearby, according to medical staff. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the organization managed to speak to health professionals at Al-Shifa, who described a "dire and perilous" situation with constant gunfire and bombing exacerbating the already critical situation. Meanwhile, Israel says it is homing in on Palestinian Hamas militants who launched deadly attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, and says the group has command centres under and near the hospitals. Read the full story here.
Members of Montreal's Jewish community say they will not be intimidated into closing the doors to their establishments after a day school in the city's west end was struck by gunfire for the second time in the past four days. Bullet impact marks were found on the facade of Yeshiva Gedola of Montreal on Sunday morning. Shell casings were also found on the ground nearby. No one was injured. "It is sad once again to see that the Jewish community and our institution has been the target of hate crime and violence," Lionel Perez, a spokesperson for the school, said at a news conference outside the building Sunday morning. Perez described the incident as a "terrorist attack," saying that while the community is concerned by the recent events, it will "not allow itself to be terrorized." Read the full story here.
Metrolinx, an Ontario government agency that oversees public transport in the southern part of the province, is now setting targets for the number of fines that inspectors collectively issue to GO train riders each month for not paying their fares. CBC News obtained internal records that show a breakdown of the target number of inspections and notices of violation the agency wants customer protection officers and revenue protection officers to handle — and how many were actually completed and issued — on each of its eight regional train lines. Notices of violation are fines issued by GO Transit to passengers who fail to provide proof of payment when requested. In October 2022, Metrolinx implemented a graduated fee structure for those fines, so that first-time offenders are now fined $35, second-time offenders receive a $50 ticket and anyone with three offences faces a $100 fine. The transit agency introduced a monthly target for the fines in September, according to an employee who was not authorized to speak on the matter. And while internal reports use the word "target," the Metrolinx employee describes the figure as more akin to a quota. Read the full story here.
Now for some good news to start your Monday: Jocelyne Saulnier said it was one of the most exciting days of her career when Canada Post called her a few years back to see if she'd be interested in designing some postal stamps. The Riverview, N.B., woman said they were gauging her interest and told her that she would get a call when a subject came up that would suit her design style. Now, her designs will be part of the holiday stamp series for this year. "It's quite a pinch-me moment," she said. Her Canada Post design is a panoramic wintry scene from left to right made up of three individual stamps each depicting a region of Canada. Read more on this story here. | | | For stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada. | | | | |  | | | Catch up on what you missed this weekend | | | With U.S. Senator Joe Manchin not running for re-election, there is speculation he could make a bid for the White House instead. Also, now that the actors strike has ended, we speak with a Canadian film producer about how long it could be before Hollywood North is back up and running.
Listen to our capsule episode | | | Today in history: November 13 | | | 1775: American revolutionary forces led by General Richard Montgomery capture Montreal from the British without a fight. Gen. Guy Carleton, the governor of Quebec, retreats to Quebec City.
1956: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that racial segregation on public buses is illegal.
1989: Champion swimmer Victor Davis dies of head and spine injuries two days after he was hit by a car outside a suburban Montreal nightclub. He was 25.
1997: Colorado Rockies outfielder Larry Walker wins the National League MVP award, becoming the first Canadian in Major League Baseball to win an MVP honour. From Maple Ridge, B.C., Walker led the N.L. that year with 49 home runs while batting .366 and driving in 130 runs. | | | (With files from CBC News, The Canadian Press, The Associated Press and Reuters) | | | | |  | CBC NEWS APP | The most convenient way to get your news
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