Articles 2024

Time to celebrate! No, not just because spring is here but also to come honour our best and brightest, and the work the section has accomplished this year!

Spring is upon us! This month's OBA Insurance Law articles feature two excellent articles: “Risky Business – Unregulated Extreme Sports Are On The Rise, Along With Lawsuits” by Patrick Brown and “The Mindful Lawyer” by Catie Fenn. We are also pleased to publish Jason Hickman’s fantastic case comment on Iannarella v. Corbett....

Extreme sports is a growing industry that is profiting from the human desire to experience the adrenaline rush associated with risk-laden activities. Whether it is racing down a ski hill on a mountain bike, falling from a white water raft, or climbing up a rock face, there is an increased appetite for such thrills. As the appetite grows, the number of private “pay to play” facilities looking to profit from the rush are on the rise — along with injuries and lawsuits.

In Nandlal v. Toronto Transit Commission, 2015 ONCA 166 the Plaintiff alleged that she fell on slippery and debris strewn steps at Kennedy subway station in Toronto. The TTC brought a motion for summary judgment.

There have been a myriad of articles published in the past few years that address stress and the havoc it can wreak in every area of our lives. We have heard it all: Stress can make you fat; Stress can kill you; Stress is worse for you than smoking; Stress can make you drink too much; Stress can make you depressed. While stress is an issue that affects everyone in our society, it is particularly pertinent to lawyers because the practice of law is inherently stressful and intense.

On February 17, 2015, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its decision in Iannarella v. Corbett, 2015 ONCA 110. This case serves, among other things, as a reminder to defence counsel of the risks associated with not disclosing surveillance.

Section Chair Audrey Ramsay reports on the recent activities of the Insurance Law Section and outlines how you can become involved.

One of the best tools in my litigator's toolbox is a Pierringer Agreement. A Pierringer Agreement, sometimes called a "proportionate share settlement agreement", is often used in multi-party litigation when one or more defendants (the "Settling Defendant") resolve their dispute with the Plaintiff(s).

The Court of Appeal decision of Galdamez v. Allstate Insurance Company of Canada changed the landscape of weekly benefits claims.

In the Bhasin v Hrynew decision, the Supreme Court recognizes that there is a duty to perform one’s obligations honestly, and not lie or otherwise mislead, under the general principle of good faith performance of contracts. The duty is not an implied term of contract law, but an imposed minimum standard, irrespective of parties’ intentions, one that the parties are not free to exclude, but may modify.