Appeal of order refusing to stay 15 arbitrations pending a related civil fraud action dismissed.
The appellant insurers sought to stay 15 individual arbitrations pending the resolution of a Superior Court action and FSCO charges alleging systemic fraud by the clinics providing the respondents' assessments and treatments.
The Arbitrator dismissed the stay motions, applying the RJR-MacDonald test for interlocutory injunctions.
On appeal, the insurers argued the Arbitrator should have applied the less stringent Armstrong criteria and erred in finding no irreparable harm.
The Director's Delegate dismissed the appeal, holding that the Armstrong criteria apply only to appellate stays under s. 283(6) of the Insurance Act, not to first-instance stays.
The Delegate found no error in the Arbitrator's application of RJR-MacDonald, noting the public interest in a timely and efficient dispute resolution system outweighed the insurers' desire to avoid duplicating evidence across multiple arbitrations.
Intact Insurance Company and Belair Insurance Company Inc. v. Iqra Hussein Aweys et al., 2013 ONFSCDRS 19