Canadian Pacific Hotels Ltd v Bank of Montreal [1987] 1S.C.R. 71

Facts: A number of forged cheques were drawn on the chequing account, at respondent bank, of one of appellant’s operating units and were made payable to defendant companies which were controlled by defendant Sands. The cheques in issue were drawn during the period April 1976 to July 1977 inclusive on the chequing account, at the respondent Bank of Montreal (‘the Bank’), of the operating unit or division of the appellant Canadian Pacific Hotels Limited (‘CP Hotels’), at the Toronto International Airport, known as the Chateau Flight Kitchen (sometimes referred to as the ‘Malton Flight Kitchen’ and hereinafter referred to as the ‘Flight Kitchen’). The banking operations of CP Hotels, including those of the Flight Kitchen, were part of the over-all banking arrangements made with the Bank by Canadian Pacific Limited (‘CP’) for itself and its subsidiary and associated companies. CP operated a centralised banking arrangement known as Treasury under which the Flight Kitchen maintained separate deposit and disbursement accounts with the Bank and a Treasury account with CP. During the relevant period the defendant Sands forged the signature of Saunders on all 23, and the signature of Hird on 19, of the cheques for which the claim is made. He made the cheques payable to the defendant companies, Dundas Discounts Limited and Sig-Mor Sales Limited, which were controlled by him. The forgeries were not discovered until August 1977. CP Hotels gave the Bank notice of them on 25 August 1977. In its defence the Bank alleges that CP Hotels is ‘estopped or otherwise denied’ from recovering the amounts debited in respect of the forged cheques by the breach of a duty, arising out of the banker and customer relationship, to check its bank statements and vouchers on at least a monthly basis, with a bank reconciliation for such purpose, and to notify the Bank immediately of any errors. The Bank also sets up in relation to this alleged duty the defence of a stated or settled account. The Bank further alleges the breach by CP Hotels of a duty to take reasonable precautions to prevent fraud by its employees in relation to dealings with the Bank by the maintenance of adequate supervision and internal accounting controls and also invokes the responsibility of a principal for the fraud of an agent acting within the scope of his actual or apparent authority.