Ontario Justice Carolyn Horkins has delivered a harsh opinion on food heiress Eleanor McCain. Horkins says in a March 22 statement that McCain has not denied that she “has embarked on a vindictive path” to ruin her estranged husband Jeff Melanson professionally and financially. Melanson resigned as head of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) last year merely 18 months into his five-year mandate amidst allegations of impropriety from McCain. Judge Horkins is pressuring McCain to move ahead on her application for annulment calling the delay “a vindictive, time-consuming and costly approach.” Writing in the Toronto Star, reporter Sammy Hudes says McCain is resisting an immediate hearing saying that her obligations to a project called “True North: The Canadian Songbook” for which she is the executive producer, is too important and time consuming to permit any distraction. She has also offered a letter from her doctor stating that she should “avoid the stress of dealing with both of these matters simultaneously.” Judge Horkins says that Melanson “has every reason to be concerned with the future cost of this litigation. He has had to borrow money from friends and family, use his line of credit and sell his condominium to access the net value. He is unemployed and cannot find a new job.” Writer Hudes notes that Mr. Melanson is seeking a $5-million payment from McCain as outlined in their pre-nuptial agreement. It is not said whether $5 million is a maximum amount possible in a negotiation or a pre-set sum on divorce.
