Can a realtor who breached his fiduciary duty by negotiating his own purchase without informing the realtor of an alternative offer be held constructive trust?

Counsel for the plaintiff relied, in part, on the more recent discussion of constructive trusts found in Soulos v. Korkontzilas, 1997 CanLII 346 (SCC), [1997] 2 S.C.R. 217 (S.C.C.). There the court, in the context of a fiduciary relationship, upheld an appellate conclusion that the remedy of constructive trust was available. The claim arose when the defendant realtor, after presenting an offer to purchase on behalf of his client, the plaintiff, breached his fiduciary duty by failing to inform the plaintiff of the vendor’s counter-offer and then negotiated his own purchase of the property. The court held that the doctrine of constructive trust could extend to provide a remedy for the realtor’s breach even though the elements of unjust enrichment were not made out. It is important to observe that the court traced the historical roots in which the remedy is available for causes of action other than unjust enrichment.