Dr. Schmidt

Following a 42-day medical negligence trial where damages were agreed at $12 million, the plaintiffs sought costs of over $4.5 million.

The court considered the complexity of the case, the high hourly rates of senior counsel, and the defendants' stout denial of liability.

The court awarded the plaintiffs $4,218,052.00 in partial indemnity costs and disbursements, payable two-thirds by the unsuccessful physicians and one-third by the hospital.

The court declined to make a Sanderson Order, instead ordering the plaintiffs to pay $250,000 in costs to the two successful defendant physicians.

The Children's Aid Society brought a motion for a parenting capacity assessment under section 98 of the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017.

The central issue was what documentation should be provided to the assessor prior to conducting the assessment.

The father's counsel argued that providing extensive background materials would create confirmatory bias, while the Society contended that such information was necessary for a meaningful assessment.

The court held that while not all affidavit materials need be automatically provided in advance, the assessor must have discretion to request any information deemed necessary to properly answer the assessment questions.

The court ordered that a brief factual summary, discussions with child protection workers, and any further materials requested by the assessor be provided.