“Where parties reach their own settlement, leaving only the issue of costs to be determined by the court, the analysis requires a cautious approach.
a. Costs may be awarded to a party even if a case settles, if the disposition of costs was not dealt with in the settlement document – or if the minutes of settlement specifically reserve the issue of costs to be determined as the only remaining issue. Talbot v. Talbot, 2016 ONSC 1351 (SCJ); DeSantis v. Hood, 2021 ONSC 5496 (SCJ).
b. However, where parties reach a pre-trial settlement, the court should exercise caution before making an award of costs. With settlements, there should generally be a compelling reason to justify costs. Davis v. Fell, 2016 ONCJ 84 (OCJ); Muncan v. Muncan2021 ONSC 1369 (SCJ); Krueger v. Krueger, 2017 ONSC 1446 (SCJ); Frape v. Mastrokalos 2017 ONCJ 915 (OCJ); Witherspoon v. Witherspoon, 2015 ONSC 6378 (SCJ); Cummings v. Cummings 2022 ONSC 5657 (SCJ).”