Don’t Give the Game Away – Tips on Maintaining Litigation Privilege
Courts have long recognized the origin and rationale of solicitor-client privilege as a necessary and essential tool for the effective administration of justice. A related but conceptually distinct protection is that of litigation privilege. While both forms of privilege serve...
Limitation of Liability Clauses: Are They Enforceable and Effective?
A frequent issue raised by design consultants is the extent to which they can limit liability for claims through limitation of liability clauses. Although such clauses are enforceable, recent case law raises questions as to their practical effectiveness. Enforceability of...
Conduct of Defence Counsel: A Lesson from the Bench
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently set out a laundry list of items that counsel should refrain from doing when defending a claim. In Aiyub Saleh v. Ludwig Nebel, 2015 ONSC 3680, Justice Myers gave defence counsel a shellacking. ...
Travel Expenses Awarded to Insurer
The recent FSCO Arbitration decision of Yeboah and Economical Mutual Insurance Company (FSCO File No. A11-003130, May 21, 2015) gives hope to insurers, and counsel for insurers, with respect to costs (referred to as “expenses” at FSCO). This hearing on expenses...
Case Comment – Heffernan Estate v. Lloyd’s Canada.
Today the Ontario Superior Court released its decision in the case of Heffernan Estate v. Lloyd’s Canada and considered whether an insurer has a duty to defend when the policy is limited in its express language to indemnification. Heffernan was...
Iannarella v. Corbett – the Master Class in Handling Surveillance in Litigation and at Trial
Insurance litigators will be interested in the recent Court of Appeal decision in Iannarella v. Corbett. The Court made comments with respect to liability in rear-end acidents and extensive comments on the use of surveillance in litigation and at trial. Facts On a...
Counsel-Expert Communications: Everything Old is New Again
In December 2014, we had left off with the Ontario Superior Court, in Moore v Getahun[1] (“Getahun”), having decided that the historically accepted practice of counsel reviewing drafts of their expert’s reports should stop, and that all instructions provided by...
Absence of Statutory Warning turns Victory for the Vehicle Leasing Industry into Loss for the Insurer
In the province of British Columbia, vehicle owners, including leasing and rental companies, are vicariously liable for the negligence of permissive drivers of their vehicles. Damages recoverable against lessors, however, are capped by statute at CDN $1 million (a provision...
Divisional Court Rules Accident Benefits Carrier No Interest in LTD Litigation
Atwi v. Certas Direct Insurance 2015 ONSC 2683 (DivCt) The plaintiff was involved in a motor vehicle accident. She claimed accident benefits from Certas, and long-term disability benefits from Manulife. Her claim for income replacement benefits was approved. The LTD...
SCC finds Nexus in Zurich v. Chubb
The Supreme Court of Canada has reversed the Ontario Court of Appeal’s decision in Zurich v. Chubb. The claimant was driving a Ford Windstar that she had rented from Wheels4Rent, a car rental agency. On September 23, 2006, she had...
