The tension between a landlord and tenant in Ottawa at a breaking point

Patrick Lecours sold his home in the Glebe and a new family is waiting to move in, but his current tenants won't move out. They say they have the right to stay because they didn't receive proper notice.

Ottawa-based lawyer Michael Thiele, a partner at Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki, said these disputes are common.

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"The tenants are actually not doing anything wrong by staying in possession," he said. "People tend to think the tenant will be liable for messing up this real estate transaction but that’s not where the law stands right now. Right now the authority is clear: a tenant is entitled to go through the process."

Now, both parties are waiting for a hearing at the Landlord and Tenant Board, which was originally scheduled for April 2024.

As they wait, tensions are escalating. The tenant's representative declined CTV News Ottawa's multiple requests for an on camera interview, but in an email said their client has been harassed to leave, saying, "There are concerns about the landlord hiring a private investigator to follow my client."

Lecours confirms to CTV News Ottawa that he did hire an investigator.

"We want to know clarity, we want to know transparency of who I am dealing with in my home," he said. "We are applying pressure based on people telling me they are not leaving on a legal front to leave the house. They were properly served and did not leave. What else do I resort to?"

Navigating tenants' rights and landlords' responsibilities in Ontario can be a difficult process.

"Each province has its own landlord-tenant laws, but in other provinces the rights favour landlords much more so than they do here in Ontario," explained Thiele. "The only place you can take your legal issue is to the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board. You can’t bypass it to go to the court so you have to place the blame entirely at the feet of the Landlord and Tenant board."

Tribunals Ontario tells CTV News Ottawa they received about 7,000 applications a month so far this year compared to the 5,500 a month they got last year. That's a 25 per cent increase. To deal with the backlog, they've hired 61 full-time and 54 part-time adjudicators.

There may be some relief for this dispute.

"The LTB has granted us an expedited hearing. Hail Mary. Fantastic. So we may have our day in court between 30 and 60 days," said Lecours.