In the well-known case of Sandhu v. Wellington Place Apartments, the jury awarded to the plaintiff non-pecuniary general damages of $311,000. This is the current value of the $100,000 maximum award established by the Supreme Court of Canada in the…
[This post contains a correction at the end, dealing with the apportionment of contributions between the two policies. We had previously said that contribution by equal shares had been ordered; in fact, Power J. ordered proportionate contribution by policy…
In Westlake v. Granby Steel Tanks, the Court of Appeal reviewed the damages award made by a jury in an action arising out of an oil spill at the plaintiffs’ home. The plaintiffs were an elderly couple. Liability had…
The Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Jesuit Fathers of Upper Canada v. Guardian Insurance last Thursday. This is an important decision for anyone working or practising in the field of insurance law. In addition to its adjudication…
Although he expressed concern about “the somewhat rigid state of the existing jurisprudence”, Justice Denis Power refused to bifurcate the trial of a motor vehicle accident case. In Aghsani v. Briglio, the plaintiff was a pedestrian who had been…
The Court of Appeal today released its decision in Plester v. Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company, a lawsuit that involved a disputed claim on a policy of fire insurance. Two of the insureds (a married couple) owned a furniture store and…
Last week’s decision of Mr. Justice David Corbett in a family law case is actually an important one for counsel acting for insurance companies. In Mantella v. Mantella, a husband and wife were involved in bitter matrimonial litigation. As seems to…
In Budning v. Vinokurov et al., the plaintiff settled with three defendants. Minutes of settlement were entered into, specifying the amounts to be paid by each defendant. Two of the defendants (a law firm and a municipality) paid their contributions to…
Markham General Insurance Company was ordered wound up in July, 2002. The liquidator of Markham is now suing its former directors and officers, alleging that they negligently managed the company. Those defendants, in turn, had D & O coverage with…
The Court of Appeal ruled today, in Wu v. Zurich Insurance Company, that a $3.1 million settlement of an accident benefits claim was enforceable by the estate of the injured claimant, who died before the settlement had been approved by…