Vernon mom awarded $23,000 in bitter land dispute with son
A bitter dispute between a Vernon artist and his mother over the ownership of the family farm has been settled by a judge who ordered the son to pay his mom $23,000 and leave the property.
B.C. Supreme Court Justice Gary Weatherill's Feb. 7 ruling puts to rest a five-year court battle whereby neither party spoke to the other even though they both lived on the same farm.
According to the B.C. Supreme Court decision, at one point in their dispute, 50-year-old metal sculptor Cory James Tyler Fuhr erected an eight-foot-high, 250-foot-long barricade between the farmhouse where his mother 73-year-old Carol Simpson Taylor lived and his separate suite.
A year later, and sick of her son's not paying his $400 rent, Taylor cut the power to his suite only to see him install a separate off-grid power system comprised of batteries and inverters.
However, the relationship wasn't always acrimonious.
The decision said the two lived on the five-acre MacDonald Road property since the late 90s after Taylor's parents died.
In 1999, Fuhr purchased half the property for $114,000 and lived with his late partner in a trailer.
He built himself a metal sculpturing studio and Taylor began growing and selling garlic and berries which earned the property farm status and along with it reduced taxes.
Fuhr then built himself a suite and put in a septic system, albeit without permits, and by 2009 was mortgage free.
It's unclear when the relationship between Fuhr and his mom began to break down, but in 2013 he had a bad ATV accident and two years later his partner Stephanie Scott died of cancer.
"(Fuhr) was emotionally distraught as he grieved the loss of Ms. Scott. He drank excessive amounts of alcohol," Justice Weatherill said in the decision. "(He) was intoxicated most nights, which manifested in loud, aggressive and frightening behaviour. He said nasty and hateful things to (his mother)."
It also turned out Fuhr had serious money issues and owed the Canada Revenue Agency $121,000, and it had registered the debt against the property.
The decision said in 2015, Fuhr and his mom came to a deal whereby he would transfer his ownership over to her and she would then take a line of credit to pay off his tax bills. He also agreed to pay his mom $400 a month in rent to live on the farm.
The arrangement lasted several years but in 2018 Fuhr stopped paying his rent.
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"The parties became hostile towards one another," the justice said. "They made various accusations of misbehaviour and impropriety against each other."
Fuhr destroyed 2,000 garlic bulbs "while on a rampage," which meant the property lost farm status and the tax break.
On one occasion, Taylor called the RCMP at night while her son was very drunk and he spent the night in a cell.
She eventually issued an eviction notice to her son and the case when to the Residential Tenancy Branch, which then determined that it had no jurisdiction over the matter.
Fuhr then built the 250-metre barricade out of "old plywood and garage doors" across the property.
While the relationship was in tatters, Taylor felt a moral obligation to help out her son and emailed him in June 2018 talking about a "fresh start."
Unbeknownst to her, he filed a case against her in the B.C. Supreme Court the very same day.
Fuhr argued in court that he was "bullied and harassed" and that he simply "gave up" and transferred the ownership to his mom.
Taylor argued her son had been "financially incompetent for years" and the transfer of the property helped him out.
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The trial lasted for eight days.
"(Fuhr's) testimony was unfocussed, defensive and accusatory," Justice Weatherill said. "He answered simple questions with long-winded, implausible answers full of irrelevant minutiae. He blamed others, usually (his mother), for his misfortunes. In cross-examination, he frequently responded with unhelpful and hateful explanations."
The justice said he'd sent emails to lawyers that were "abusive, threatening and vulgar" and responded to reasonable requests with "name-calling, threats and accusations of fraud, coercion and criminal offences."
"Although clearly a talented artist, the evidence satisfies me that (Fuhr) cuts corners and lacks organizational acumen. He is poor at keeping records, poor at paying bills, a poor businessman and a very poor historian," the Justice said. "In contrast, (Taylor) gave her evidence in a straightforward and even-handed manner. She gave (her son) credit where she felt it was due."
Justice Weatherill described Fuhr as his own worst enemy.
Ultimately, all his legal arguments about the property transfer were dismissed by the justice.
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The case wasn't over though, as Taylor had made counterclaims against her son.
Taylor argued for damages for trespass, nuisance and years of unpaid rent.
Justice Weatherill ordered Fuhr to pay his mom $16,000 for more than three years of unpaid rent and $7,000 to cover the destroyed garlic patch and the increased tax that went with it.
The Justice then gave him 30 days to dismantle the barricade and 60 days to move off the farm.
Fuhr is also on the hook for his mother's legal fees.
— This story was corrected at 9:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, to confirm that it was Taylor who was growing garlic, not Fuhr.
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