In my earlier post dated August 10, 2022, entitled “Judges are Split on Whether to Take Judicial Notice of Covid-19 Vaccine Efficacy”, I outlined the brewing conflict between judges on whether to take judicial notice of the efficacy of the Covid 19 Vaccine. I concluded that segment as follows: bbbbb“It is a delicate balance for……
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When an Acquaintance Takes Your Vehicle Without Permission Your Response Could Cost You Millions
Everyday owners routinely allow acquaintances to drive their vehicles: friends, colleagues, customers, relatives, etc. This is typically done with the owner’s consent, and as such, the owner remains vicariously liable for the driver’s errors. Contrast this with stolen vehicles where the owner is largely exempt from liability because of the absence of the owner’s consent,……
Standard of Care Expert Report not Mandatory in Slip and Fall Personal Injury Cases
In this recent decision, the court had to contend with a slip and fall personal injury claim where neither the plaintiff nor the defendant led expert evidence on the standard of care required of a property maintenance company and of a snow removal company that were taking care of a mall. In tort cases, where……
Plaintiffs Should Exercise Due Diligence in Identifying Potential Tortfeasors Early
In my prior post entitled “Limitation Period Bars Slip and Fall Claim Against Snow Removal Contractor”, I outlined some practical tips to avoid having good claims needlessly ended because of tardiness. It went something like this: “The first practice tip is to undertake the due diligence as soon as practicable after the incident: this is……
Fall from Trailer Roof at Time of Being Cleaned and Inspected is an “Accident” under the SABS
This recent Statutory Accident Benefit case was hotly contested, likely because a lot of money was on the line when the claimant sustained catastrophic injuries after falling from the roof of a trailer that he was cleaning and inspecting prior to embarking on a trip. The Licence Appeal Tribunal (“LAT”) ruled that this was not……
Recent Divisional Court Ruling May Give Life to Some Late SABS Claims
It is very well-established through decades of case law that an automobile insurer’s notice denying Statutory Accident Benefits to a claimant must be clear and unequivocal, failing which the two year limitation period to dispute the stoppage will not be triggered. As such, over the years insurance companies have become quite adept at drafting denial……
With Few Exceptions, Off-road Vehicles in Ontario Need to be Insured
This recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision makes it very clear that off-road vehicles (ie: ATV’s, dirt bikes, dune buggies, etc) must be insured under an automobile policy in Ontario, subject only to a few narrow exceptions. There is a common underlying belief that if you use your off-road vehicle on your own property, or……
Tort of Intrusion upon Seclusion Not Applicable in Data Breach Caused by Hackers
In this recently released decision, the Ontario Court of Appeal clarified that in circumstances where a company’s database is stolen by hackers, the tort of intrusion upon seclusion is not applicable or available. The tort of intrusion upon seclusion is available when a person with access or control over private information uses, or partakes in……
Court Refuses to Enforce Verbal Contract that was Too Vague
In this recent court ruling, a renovation contractor was denied any recovery, in part because the contract entered into with the homeowner was simply too vague in detail to be capable of enforcement. The vagueness was only compounded by the fact that the contract was verbal only, and hence subject to much disagreement over what……
Limitation Period Not Extended Where Plaintiff Was Aware that Defendant’s Repair Efforts Were Futile
In this recent decision before the Ontario Court of Appeal, the plaintiff was seeking to delay the start of a limitation period because the Defendant supplier was trying to fix faulty generators supplied to the Plaintiff. This would involve the application of section 5(1)(a)(iv) of the Limitations Act, 2002: the entire section reads as follows:……
Occupier Liability Depends on Control of a Property, and Not Just Ownership
The importance of control, rather than ownership, as a trigger to find a party liable as an “occupier” was center stage in this recent decision holding an owner of a donation bin placed on City property liable for slip and fall personal injury damages. Prior to the trial, the Plaintiff agreed to release the City……
Doctrine of Witness Immunity Protects Witness from Misrepresentation Claim
In this recent case, the Divisional Court ruled that a litigant who was not pleased with the testimony of an opponent, given during a hearing, cannot sue their opponent in a separate proceeding for misrepresentation. The court was dealing with a residential tenant who sued their landlord for alleged misrepresentations made before the Landlord and……
Fraudsters Cannot Protect Themselves with an Entire-Agreement Clause
In this recent decision, the Ontario Court of Appeal clarified and expanded on their prior ruling in Royal Bank of Canada v. 1643937 Ontario Inc., 2021 ONCA 98, 154 O.R. (3d) 561 (C.A.) (“Royal Bank v. 164”), effectively making it very difficult for fraudsters to enforce contracts that were induced through their fraudulent misrepresentations. Briefly,……
Demanding Insurance Particulars from Defendant Tortfeasors
This recently released court ruling contains a rather bizarre factual circumstance: a slip and fall personal injury claim defended privately by the owner of the subject apartment complex, rather than through an insurance company. This is very rare indeed. Typically, businesses purchase insurance to acquire peace of mind. When the company is exposed to potentially……
The Court Can Assess the Propriety of a Refusal Beyond the Reasons Given at the Discovery
This recent decision delves into Rule 34.12(1) which requires a party to provide a reason for refusing to answer a question during an examination for discovery. Specific to this case was the fact that the defendant deponent, in many cases, gave one reason for refusing to answer a question during discovery questioning, and subsequently relied……
Commercial Landlords Need to be Careful with a Tenant’s Chattel Mortgaged Property Following Lease Termination
In brief, this recent Court of Appeal decision confirms that a commercial landlord who takes (and disposes of) a tenant’s chattel mortgaged equipment after the tenant abandoned the premises, must pay the Chattel Mortgagee market value for that property, and not the amount the tenant owed to the Chattel Mortgagee. In this case, this was……
Limitation Period Bars Slip and Fall Claim Against Snow Removal Contractor
This recent case illustrates the importance for plaintiffs and their legal representatives to spend some careful and thoughtful time identifying the parties that are potentially responsible for the alleged loss or injury, because if they fail to sue a responsible party within the limitation period (typically two (2) years, with a few exceptions), there is……
Court Rules that the False Imputation of Homosexuality is not Defamatory
In this recent case, a church going Plaintiff sued a Defendant in defamation for falsely asserting that the Plaintiff was gay. Despite the judge’s conclusion that this was untrue, that this caused a lot of turmoil for the Plaintiff in his church community and with his wife (effectively lowering the plaintiff’s reputation in the eyes……
Settlements Can Break Down Over the Wording of the Release
During settlement negotiations, at a mediation or otherwise, the parties must remember that their discussions shouldn’t end with the big-ticket items (damages, costs, disbursements, etc.) because “deals” can fall apart over the small stuff: in this recent case, a fight over the wording of a Full and Final Release. After agreeing on the big stuff,……
Commercial Tenants Impacted by Covid 19 Must Still Pay Full Rent to Avoid Eviction
According to this recent pronouncement by the Ontario Court of Appeal, commercial tenants faced with eviction because of non-payment of rent induced by Covid-19 shutdowns can seek relief from forfeiture from the courts; however, if the court grants the relief, and permits the tenant to remain in possession of the tenanted space, the full amount……
Costly Lesson Suing Someone Who Clearly Shouldn’t Have Been Sued
This recent case is a cautionary tale about suing a defendant for the wrong purpose. In this instance, the decision to sue a lawyer who was representing a party in opposition to the plaintiff in an earlier transaction, solely for the purpose of getting some documentation from this lawyer to use in the lawsuit, proved……
Judges are Split on Whether to Take Judicial Notice of Covid-19 Vaccine Efficacy
In this decision published online two days ago, Peterborough Superior Court Judge Charles Corkery refused to take judicial notice of Covid-19 vaccine efficacy. Judges are clearly breaking into two camps: those that are accepting of government policy on Covid-19 vaccines without question, and those that don’t. The central issue typically centers on the use of the……
Non-disclosure of Settlement is Acceptable if Litigation Landscape not Modified
Of the heels of cases like Tallman Truck Centre Limited v. K.S.P. Holdings Inc., 2022 ONCA 66 and Poirier v. Logan, 2022 ONCA 350 (see my prior posts commenting on these decisions here and here), there seems to be a reflex reaction on the part of non-settling parties to bring motions whenever there is an……
Being Denied the Right to Hear Opponent’s Evidence is Justice Denied
This recent decision expands on my prior post entitled “Cross-Examination Denied at Trial is Likely Justice Denied.” This recently released decision from the Divisional Court concerned a decision made by a tribunal (in this case the Landlord and Tenant Board), and the appellate concluded that the tribunal’s decision had to be set aside because the……
Building Permit Upheld by Court Due to Legal Non-Conforming Use
This is another neighbour dispute case (see for example my other post entitled “Causing a Nuisance to Neighbours.”) In this instance, one neighbour sued the Township and its Chief Building Official, seeking an order that they violated the Zoning and Building Code laws when they granted a building permit that allowed their neighbour to erect……