Former Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse and his spouse are in a legal battle with the Ontario government over the denial of a rebate worth close to $700,000 in foreign buyer tax they paid for their Mississauga residence. The couple filed a notice of appeal on July 6 with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, claiming that the government wrongly refused to reimburse them for a non-resident speculation tax (NRST) they paid when purchasing their $4.65 million home in 2021. The NRST is levied on residential properties bought by foreign nationals, as per the province’s guidelines.
Nurse and his wife, Roberta, assert in their appeal that they did not fit the profile of real estate speculators targeted by the legislation. They state that the property served as their main residence from 2021 to 2023. The couple’s legal representative, Mike Collinge, declined to provide further comments at this time.
The appeal highlights Nurse’s contributions to the province while living in the residence. Although Nurse and his wife were foreign nationals during this period, Nurse held a foreign national work permit and worked for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment LTD., the parent company of the Raptors, for nearly a decade. The notice of appeal emphasizes the substantial economic and social value Nurse brought to the province.
Nurse, who led the Raptors to their historic NBA championship victory in 2019, was released in 2023 after a disappointing season. The appeal contends that Nurse and his wife were eligible for an NRST rebate under provincial regulations. It notes that the couple applied for the rebate in March 2024 but received a denial in April of the same year. Subsequent objections and exchanges with the Ministry of Finance led to a final rejection in April 2025, prompting Nurse and his wife to initiate legal proceedings seeking the rebate amount along with applicable interest and additional relief as determined by the court.
