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ARTICLE · 19 JANUARY 2021

Notoriously Bad Movie Leads To Unprecedented Order For Security For Costs Of Trial Judgment

Gardiner Roberts LLP
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For perhaps the first time, the Ontario Court of Appeal has ordered an unsuccessful litigant to post security for costs of a trial judgment before being allowed to proceed with an appeal...

CanadaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
James R.G. Cook
James R.G. Cook
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For perhaps the first time, the Ontario Court of Appeal has ordered an unsuccessful litigant to post security for costs of a trial judgment before being allowed to proceed with an appeal: Wiseau Studio, LLC v. Harper,  2021 ONCA 31.

The underlying trial decision arose from a dispute over a documentary entitled A Room Full of Spoons, about The Room, a 2003 film so bad that it has developed a cult-like following. In 2017, Tommy Wiseau, the mysterious man behind The Room, sued the documentary film-makers for copyright infringement and misappropriation of personality which prevented the documentary's scheduled release. The film-makers, in turn counter-claimed against Wiseau for the amounts that they lost by being unable to release A Room Full of Spoons  (which is titled after an inside joke amongst super-fans of The Room).

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