Articles 2024

The release of MDS Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance Company from the Ontario Court of Appeal, rounded out 2021 with another major insurance-related appellate decision primarily authored by Justice Julie Thorburn (also responsible for crafting the written reasons in the seminal multi-insurer coverage decision, Markham (City) v. AIG released in mid-2020). This article summarizes why the MDS v. Factory Mutual decision is important for any insurance-related and contractual interpretation dispute.

The legal issues affecting health professionals since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic have continued to evolve with society’s response to COVID-19. The recent rollout of vaccinations brought unprecedented challenges for health professionals struggling to navigate this new legal landscape. In November, the OBA’s Health Law Section presented a program which addressed some of the most current issues facing both health law lawyers and regulated health professionals.

In our second installment, we asked Lonny Rosen and Joshua Lerner the same nine questions and recorded their responses. Lonny is an experienced health law advocate and founding partner of Rosen Sunshine LLP, while Joshua is a fourth year associate at the firm.

Following are our summaries of the civil decisions of the Ontario Court of Appeal for the weeks of December 6-10 and 13-17, 2021.

The Honourable Justice Glenn Hainey passed away in October. He had a remarkable career and his contributions to the estates world during his time on the bench at the Toronto Estates List cannot be overstated. He will be greatly missed by the estates bar.

The manner in which the steps leading up to a Will challenge trial are dealt with can have a significant impact on how the proceeding is ultimately concluded. In this article, Charlotte Hobson shares a summary of the fourth session of the Trusts and Estates Sections program dealing with Will challenges. This session addressed important steps including mediation, examinations, and retaining an expert witness.

At the third session of the OBA's Will Challenges program series, the speakers' focus was on procedure and orders giving directions. Panelists explained the differences between proceeding by action or application, and factors to consider in determining which is most appropriate. There was also a helpful discussion about some terms of an order giving directions that are particularly relevant in Will challenges. Charlotte Hobson shares her experience attending the program.

The Estates List Users Committee met in September to discuss a number of matters, including the appointment of Justice Dietrich as the new head of the Toronto Estates Court, new court scheduling practices, and the new Estates Bench and Bar Committee, among other things.

At the November Brown Bag Lunch, attendees enjoyed a lively debate about a hypothetical situation raised by one BBLer related to a beneficiary's interest in a real property that was owned by a trust, and the conditions of that interest. Participants also brainstormed how to ensure that a testator's charitable gifts are made in accordance with their wishes in light of an obstacle to fulfilling those wishes.

In October, Trusts and Estates Law Section members gathered for the monthly Brown Bag Lunch. As always, participants raised interesting questions and topics for discussion, including missing beneficiaries, and how to designate a "successor owner" of an insurance policy. BBLers also discussed the upcoming changes to the Rules of Civil Procedure and the new probate forms.