Owner Vicariously Liable for Drunk Driver’s Accident
Recently, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice considered the vicarious liability of an owner of a vehicle for the negligence of the driver of the vehicle in the unfortunate case of Watts v. Boyce, Dunham and Co-Operators. The lawsuit in...
Particulars of surveillance are discoverable, even if surveillance will not be relied upon at trial
The superior court has ruled that a party who obtains surveillance must disclose the particulars of the surveillance on examination for discovery, even if they do not intend to rely on the surveillance at trial. In the case of Arsenault-Armstrong...
No Laches in Loss Transfer
The Superior Court has released an important loss transfer decision, finding that the equitable “doctrine of laches” does not apply in loss transfer proceedings. In Intact v. Lombard, Intact became responsible for paying accident benefits to its insured as a...
Policy Interpretation: Why would words matter less than expectations?
Canadian Underwriter Magazine
Conjugal Relationship does not a Spouse Make
The Superior Court has given us some guidance on what it means to have lived in a conjugal relationship for the three-year period before a motor vehicle accident. In ING v. Co-operators, the arbitrator found that Amy and Jason, who...
Oh Henry!: ONCA Upholds Economic Loss Decision
The Court of Appeal has released its decision in Henry v. Gore, unanimously upholding the motion judge’s decision on the meaning of the “economic loss” threshold under the new SABS-2010. Henry was catastrophically injured in a motor vehicle accident on...
Confirmation that Leave Required For Refusals Motion Following Delivery of Trial Record
Confirmation that Leave Required For Refusals Motion Following Delivery of Trial RecordHamilton v. Ontario (MTO) 2013 ONSC 4536 On July 15, 2013 Justice Firestone ruled that, where a party has delivered a trial record, they must obtain leave to bring...
Court: Plaintiff can Corroborate Doctor’s Evidence for Threshold Motion
In an interesting case heard on March 20, 2013, Ontario’s Divisional Court was faced with the question of whether or not a plaintiff is precluded from corroborating a physician’s evidence in relation to change of function, in the context of...
FSCO Un-Dewing What FSCO has Done
Insurers involved in FSCO proceedings should be aware that despite binding authorities instructing otherwise, FSCO Arbitrator Wilson has once again ordered an insurer to disclose “forthwith” whether or not it has any surveillance in its possession. And if it does...
Court of Appeal Skunks Late Property Loss Claims
The Court of Appeal has allowed an insurer’s appeal asserting the one-year limitation period in an all-risk property policy. The decision highlights how important it is for insurance contracts – and especially limitation period provisions in them – to have...