The Judicial Registrar refused the bulk of the defendant's application to amend its defence, permitting amendment only to two specific paragraphs. Applying the Charan factors, the Court found that the proposed amendments would cause substantial delay by requiring joinder of additional defendants, would cause irreparable prejudice to the plaintiff (including exposure to limitation defences and loss of binding Medical Panel findings), and that the defendant had not provided a satisfactory explanation for seeking the amendments some two-and-a-half years after commencement of proceedings. The defendant's failure to initiate third party proceedings within the Wrongs Act limitation period was held to be a consequence that should not fall on the plaintiff.
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