B.C. judge orders condo owner Rose Jordison to sell unit [Jan 15, 2012 – 9:32 PM ET ]

By Keith Fraser

 

VANCOUVER • In what’s believed to be a first for B.C., a judge has ordered a condominium owner to sell her suite due to an avalanche of complaints from other owners.

 

The concerns about Rose Jordison and her son Jordy included excessive noise, abusive language, uttering threats and harassment and took place over several years.

 

Ms. Jordison, who moved into her suite in 2006, was fined $20,000 by the strata council over the course of several years but the situation failed to improve, so the council took her to court.

 

In a ruling released Friday, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Richard Blair said it was a “draconian” measure to order Ms. Jordison to sell her apartment, but necessary.

 

“The Jordisons’ actions amount to an assault upon those residents of the strata who have been for some years subjected to the Jordisons’ misbehaviour in all its varied forms,” said the judge.

 

“The strata’s affidavits are detailed and compelling, corroborating each other in many instances and supported by contemporaneous documentation included in the affidavits.”

 

The affidavits include complaints about loud banging, pounding on the floor, doors slamming and screaming and yelling coming from the Jordison unit. Two pictures were dislodged from the walls of one neighbouring unit, nails started to loosen in one ceiling and some water leaked from the unit.

 

One neighbour complained that the son was making sounds of a pig, which she concluded were directed at her, and another reported that she’d been called a “fat cow” and given the finger.

 

Another female resident said she was called a “f–king bitch,” a whore and a “ho for a show.”

 

The resident reported that water was thrown at her as she was passing the Jordisons’ suite.

 

Police were called but were reluctant to become involved in the dispute, according to the ruling.

 

“In some ways this was the death of a thousand cuts because they’re individually just juvenile,” said Philip Dougan, a lawyer for the strata council. “But over the course of time, (there have been) hundreds and hundreds of times where you’ve been intimidated or sworn at…. We just couldn’t believe what we were hearing.

 

“So we wanted it to be sure that this wasn’t a couple of people who had it in for Rose.”

 

Mr. Dougan said he believes it’s the first time in B.C. a strata owner has been ordered to sell a unit over complaints of bylaw infractions.

 

The judge ordered Ms. Jordison, who did not appear in court to defend herself against the legal action, to list her unit for sale within 30 days of personal service of the ruling.

 

She’ll have conduct of the sale for a period of 90 days after the listing and if a sale doesn’t take place within that 90-day period, the petitioner can apply to assume conduct of the sale. Ms. Jordison was also told that neither she nor her son may purchase, lease, rent or reside in any other unit in the building.

 

She could not be reached for comment Friday.