Ford not hitting on all cylinders but on the right road: Rastin
Ontario’s Conservative government deserves praise for many initiatives announced in its first year in power, though it’s at the risk of making serious missteps in some areas, says Barrie-area personal injury lawyer
Steve Rastin.
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Why LAT’s first catastrophic impairment case must be re-heard
The Ontario Licence Appeal Tribunal [LAT]’s first ruling on a disputed catastrophic impairment claim is now officially quashed, the province’s appeal court confirmed in a decision released Friday. As it stands, the disputed claim now has to go before a different LAT adjudicator.
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Priority dispute over accident benefits hinges on endorsement
Continental Casualty Company (
CNA Canada) must pay both mandatory and optional accident benefits to an injured pedestrian after a judge set aside the decision of an arbitrator in a priority dispute.
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Where insurance fits into bicycle accidents
If you have clients who are riding their bikes this summer, how does liability insurance work if they get into an accident?
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There are now flags for pedestrians to hold at dangerous Toronto crosswalks
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What Happens to Your Body When You’re Lonely? How It Can Be Physically Damaging
If you’re not switching from one tab to the next on a computer all day, you’re likely scrolling through social media with your phone glued to your side. These unlimited channels of technology allow you to be connected to whomever, practically whenever, you’d like. Yet, as of December 2018, according to a study published in the journal International Psychogeriatrics, three out of four Americans experience “moderate-high levels of loneliness.”
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Caregiver Education Program
Through a grant provided by the Ministry of Health and Long-term Care, the OBIA team is excited to begin the implementation of our “Support, Hope & Resiliency: An Education and Training Program for Caregivers of Acquired Brain Injury Survivors” across the province of Ontario. This caregiver education program will be provided at more than 40 locations across the province and will be hosted by members of local brain injury associations and service providers.
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[23] The Plaintiffs seek costs at partial indemnity rates in the amount of $95,096 plus HST of $12,362 for a total of $107,458. They also seek disbursements of $29,070. Included in the list of disbursements is the insurance premium of $1,458 the Plaintiffs paid to obtain $100,000 coverage for possible adverse costs insurance. The Defendants state that it is settled law that such an insurance premium is not a recoverable disbursement. I disagree. There are conflicting opinions on this issue. Milanetti, J., Reilly, J. and Firestone, J. respectively in Markovic v. Richards, 2015 ONSC 6983 (CanLII), Foster v. Durkin, 2016 ONSC 684 (CanLII) and Valentine v. Rodriguez-Elizalde, 2016 ONSC 6395 (CanLII) each held that the premium for adverse costs insurance is not to be reimbursed by the Defendants as a compensable disbursement. I then turn to Armstrong v. Lakeridge Resort Ltd., 2017 ONSC 6565 (CanLII). Salmers, J. in that decision held that the costs insurance premium was a compensable disbursement. Salmers, J. noted at para 21:
“Without costs insurance, the fear of a very large adverse costs award would cause many Plaintiffs of modest means to be afraid to pursue meritorious claims. It is in the interests of justice that Plaintiffs be able to pursue meritorious claims without fear of a potentially devastating adverse costs award.
[24] I find adverse costs insurance to be an “access to justice” issue. For that reason, I hold it to be a compensable disbursement to be included as a costs obligation payable to the Plaintiffs. This amount is $1,458.
