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– – – – like their own house being the target of Ms. Taerk’s occasional point-and-click. Another complaint submitted by the Plaintiffs is that Mr. Taerk has taken up the habit of walking by their house with a voice recorder in hand, trying to catch some of the verbal exchanges between the parties. According to Mr. Taerk’s affi- davit, Ms. Morland-Jones occasionally shouts profanity or other insults at him when he is on his walks, so he now only ventures onto the road armed with his dictaphone. … For their part, the Defendants have not been entirely innocent. They appear to have learned that the Plaintiffs – and especially Ms. Morland-Jones –have certain sensitivities, and they seem to relish playing on those sensitivities. They realize, for example, that Ms. Morland- Jones does not enjoy having her house photographed, and so Ms. Taerk tends to take her cell phone out and point it at the Plaintiffs’ house precisely when Ms. Morland-Jones can see her doing it. Ms. Taerk has testified that, in fact, she has not taken any pictures but rather has been pretending to do so by simply point- ing her phone and clicking it randomly. … In any case, Ms. Morland-Jones can be counted on to respond as predicted. It is a repeated form of hijinks that could, if a sponsor were found, be broadcast and screened weekly, although probably limited to the cable channels high up in the 300’s. The same is true with Mr. Taerk’s voice recording technique. Although Mr. Taerk may have started carrying this device in order to record Ms. Morland-Jones’ spon- taneous eruptions, cause and effect have now been reversed. Mr. Taerk appears to enjoy walking by the Plaintiffs’ resi- dence with his dictaphone conspicuously raised to shoulder level when he sees Ms. Morland-Jones in her garden, which then prompts the very outbursts that he was at first reacting to. … Now the Plaintiffs have pursued civil litigation. To their credit, or perhaps to the credit of their counsel who has advised them well in this regard, the Defendants have not counterclaimed. ... The Plaintiffs have been their own worst adversaries. In my view, the parties do not need a judge; what they need is a rather stern kindergarten teacher. I say this with the greatest of respect, as both the Plaintiffs and the Defendants are educated professionals who are successful in their Click here to return to Table of Contents work lives and are otherwise productive members of the community. Despite their many advantages in life, however, they are acting like children. And now that the matter has taken up an entire day in what is already a crowded motions court, they are doing so at the taxpayer’s expense. As I explained to Plaintiffs’ counsel at the hearing, a court cannot order the Defendants to be nice to the Plain- tiffs. Litigation must focus on legal wrongs and legal rights – commodities that are in remarkably short supply in this action. … There is no serious issue to be tried in this action. The Plaintiff ’s motion is therefore dismissed. Both counsel have submitted costs outlines indicating that the parties have spent tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees. … There will be no costs order. Each side deserves to bear its own costs. A LIFETIME OF HIGH PERFORMANCE PROFILE 90 BALLAST ROLLER PROUDLY MADE IN MANITOBA Municipal Leader | Summer 2014 51