A man who tried to sue the City of Burnaby three years ago for not allowing him to operate a short-term rental contrary to bylaws has been declared a “vexatious litigant” by a B.C. Supreme Court judge.
Tong (Heintz) Sun, his father Jinzhong Sun and his mother Lizhun Zhao can no longer launch legal actions in B.C. without first getting permission from a judge, after a Nov. 30 ruling by Justice Shelley Fitzpatrick found there was "evidence of an abuse of process on the part of the family" in the many lawsuits they've filed.
In 2019, Heintz Sun tried to sue the city and the owners of a five-bedroom house near the Ocean View cemetery for $35,000 when his plans for leasing the place and using it as a short-term rental through Airbnb, Expedia, Booking.com and other such platforms fell apart because of municipal bylaws, according to court documents.
He had signed a one-year tenancy agreement that allowed for short-term rentals.
Three months later, however, the owners told him to stop using the property as an Airbnb because the city was threatening to fine them for breaking the zoning bylaw.
Heintz Sun tried to sue for breach of contract, but provincial court Judge Wilson Lee dismissed the case, saying the contract had been illegal because it was sanctioning an illegal business.
The more recent ruling by Fitzpatrick found evidence Heintz Sun and his parents have been abusing the court process through a “litany" of such lawsuits.
Mercedes Benz Financial Services Canada Corporation, which has been the target of three lawsuits launched by the family, applied to the court to have them declared vexatious litigants.
The company argued the family would continue to bring court proceeding that “serve no purpose but the waste the time and resources of the courts and the defendants” unless the vexatious litigant order was made.
Heintz Sun’s mother (Heintz Sun did not attend the court hearing) argued all the claims are just and the family is “seeking only fairness and justice.”
But the evidence weighed against them, according to Fitzpatrick, and she made the order.
Fitzpatrick noted the order wouldn’t prevent the family from pursuing "reasonable" claims.
“The result of this type of order is not to deny recovery where there is a reasonable claim to be advanced,” she wrote. “The Sun Parties will have the opportunity to satisfy the courts that any further applications or further legal proceedings are appropriate.”
Follow Cornelia Naylor on Twitter @CorNaylor
Email cnaylor@burnabynow.com
