The insured engaged in unprotected sexual intercourse and contracted genital herpes, which led to transverse myelitis and resulted in paraplegia.
He claimed compensation under his group accident insurance policy, which covered bodily injuries occasioned solely through external, violent and accidental means.
The insurer denied the claim, arguing the injury was the result of a disease contracted in the ordinary course of events.
The Supreme Court of Canada allowed the insurer's appeal, holding that the transmission of a disease through normal sexual intercourse is not an accident within the ordinary meaning of the term, and therefore the resulting paralysis was not covered by the policy.
