Thomas Gold Pettingill LLP is pleased to provide this online resource to our clients. Below is a searchable database of key cases impacting the defence of commercial and tort litigation. Assembled by Sarah Jones, Natasha O'Toole, and Chris Schnarr, each case is reviewed, briefly summarized, and categorized for easy access.
The plaintiff sued the City for property damages arising from drainage issues. The City argued that the 2-year limitation period barred the claim, and that the 15-year ultimate limitation period also barred the claim because the storm sewers in question were installed in 2002. Justice Bordin granted the motion on both grounds. Regarding the ultimate...
The minor plaintiff was attacked by a dog while visiting the residence of the defendant tenants with her parents. The landlord defendants, who owned the home, were not present at the time of the attack. The landlord defendants brought a summary judgment motion on the basis that the Dog Owners’ Liability Act (DOLA) places liability...
This action arises from a rear end motor vehicle accident. The at-fault driver was operating a transport truck. The tractor portion was registered to Orchid Leasing Corp., however as of the time of the accident the tractor’s driver had made final payment on the lease, had received a bill of sale and ownership documentation, and...
This action arises from an accident between a pedestrian and a motor vehicle. The plaintiff was crossing a crosswalk and was struck by a turning vehicle. The driver was charged under the Highway Traffic Act for making an unsafe turn. He pleaded guilty and was convicted of the charge. He conceded his negligence in the...
This action arose from an accident wherein the plaintiff fell off his motorcycle due to a longitudinal discontinuity or lip in the pavement of a municipal roadway. At trial, Justice Krawchenko found that the existence of the discontinuity at an irregularly angled intersection created a risk of harm to ordinary reasonable drivers such as the...
Following a four-week MVA jury trial, the plaintiffs were awarded $652,521 in damages by the jury. The plaintiffs recovered only $191,228.65 after application of statutory deductibles. The plaintiffs claimed costs and disbursements totaling $461,844.66. The defendant claimed costs totaling $178,803.71. One month before trial, the defendant had made an offer to settle for $250,000. The...
BACKGROUND The claim involved an eleven year-old plaintiff named Audrey Serravalle. She was struck by the defendant, Thomas Duggan (“Mr. Duggan”), when she was a crossing a residential road on May 17, 2018. Mr. Duggan was travelling eastbound and crossed the yellow line to pass a garbage truck that had stopped in the eastbound lane....
The plaintiffs sued various defendants after they purchased a home with alleged defects. One of the defendants, the City of Toronto, opened building permits related to the property in 1987 and 2017. The plaintiffs purchased the home in 2019. The City brought a motion under r. 21.01(1)(a) to strike the claims arising from the 1987...
A two year old toddler had an accidental death while in the care of her father. The toddler's mother, the toddler’s brother, and the toddler’s estate sued the father and another adult who was present at the time for damages. Justice Leroy held that the father was negligent. Justice Leroy awarded FLA general damages related...
The plaintiff was involved in a relatively minor motor vehicle accident in 2015. She had been in a more serious accident in 2012 for which she was at fault. The plaintiff argued that she had been 80 to 90 percent recovered by the time of the 2015 accident. She returned to work for three years,...
This action arises from a 2020 motor vehicle accident. The plaintiff brought an ex parte motion seeking an order for substituted service of the statement of claim on the defendant driver by serving his automobile liability insurer. The insurer took no position on the motion. Justice Trimble dismissed the motion for two reasons: (1) the...
Shortly after her 30th birthday, the plaintiff was injured at a bar where bocce was played near an outdoor patio seating area. The defendant Goulet tossed a ball to a friend standing near the plaintiff. The friend did not know the ball had been thrown to him and it hit the plaintiff in the back...
Background On March 17, 2020, the Province of Ontario declared a provincial emergency due to the COVID-19 virus under the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act. In an attempt to limit the spread of the virus, the province ordered the closure of non-essential businesses and recreational facilities. Restaurants and bars were required to reduce their...
The defendant brought a successful pre-trial threshold motion in this personal injury action arising from a motor vehicle accident. The plaintiff was self-represented. In advance of the trial the plaintiff informed defence counsel that he would not be calling any witnesses at trial other than himself. He further confirmed that he would be relying only...
This personal injury action arises from a motor vehicle accident. The defendants arranged for the primary plaintiff to be assessed by a neuropsychologist. Counsel for the parties exchanged correspondence confirming: the date for the 6.5 hour appointment; the plaintiff’s agreement to attend; and that a missed appointment fee would be charged if he failed to...
The plaintiff slipped and fell twice in close succession on February 7, 2017 – once on a sidewalk and once on a roadway in or near a crosswalk. At the material time the City contracted with D. Crupi & Sons Ltd. for winter maintenance of the roadway, and with Maple-Crete for winter maintenance of the...
The plaintiff slipped on ice in a mall parking lot and fractured her elbow. She returned to work as a school bus driver nine months later. She sued the mall property manager and the contractor responsible for winter maintenance in the parking lot for damages. Following a trial, Justice Doyle found that the defendant winter...
Background On November 25, 2022, the Ontario Court of Appeal released a trilogy of decisions which held that the tort of intrusion upon seclusion could not be claimed against a defendant who had suffered a cyberattack.[1] All three matters involved class actions that were at the certification stage. The plaintiffs in each action were alleging...
Less than a month before a scheduled trial, the plaintiff in an MVA personal injury action accepted an offer to settle from the statutory third party for $85,000 plus interest, disbursements, and costs to be agreed upon or assessed. The parties were unable to agree on costs and the plaintiff brought a motion for a...
This personal injury MVA action was dismissed by a jury following a 13 day trial. The jury concluded that the defendant was not negligent despite having rear ended the plaintiff. The jury accepted that the accident was caused due to the defendant's sudden seizure. The jury further held that it was reasonable for the defendant...
This article was originally published by The Lawyer’s Daily (www.thelawyersdaily.ca), part of LexisNexis Canada Inc: Ontario Court rules against insurer in claim by estate of teen killed in Iranian plane crash - The Lawyer's Daily (thelawyersdaily.ca) An insurer was recently ordered to pay a death benefit of $100,000 to the estate of a teen killed...
