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The court granted summary judgment dismissing a negligence claim against an ambulance driver, finding the plaintiff's expert evidence relied on inadmissible hearsay.
The defendants, Kristopher Purdy (an ambulance driver) and The Corporation of The City of Greater Sudbury, brought a motion for summary judgment to dismiss claims of negligence arising from a motorcycle accident.
The plaintiff alleged that Purdy's operation of the ambulance caused the accident by startling traffic, leading an unidentified driver to brake suddenly, which forced the plaintiff to lay down his motorcycle.
The court found the plaintiff's expert report problematic, as its conclusions were based on inadmissible hearsay and contradicted by objective evidence (Automatic Vehicle Location video data).
The court granted the defendants' motion, dismissing the action against them, concluding there was no genuine issue requiring a trial.
The court declined to award costs to either party after offsetting the plaintiff's pre-offer costs against the defendant's post-offer costs under Rule 49.10.
The plaintiff, Paramjit Singh, and the defendant, Shoppers Home Health Care (Ontario) Inc., each sought costs following a four-week jury trial.
The jury found Shoppers liable for Mr. Singh's injuries but also found Mr. Singh 75% contributorily negligent, resulting in a total award of approximately $73,000, which was less favorable than Shoppers' Rule 49.10 settlement offer of $100,000.
The court determined that Shoppers' global offer to multiple plaintiffs (Mr. Singh and his family with FLA claims) was valid and triggered Rule 49.10 cost consequences.
The court then assessed Mr. Singh's partial indemnity costs up to the offer date and Shoppers' partial indemnity costs from that date to the end of trial, considering factors under Rule 57.01.
Despite Mr. Singh's success on liability, his low recovery and high contributory negligence meant the Rule 49.10 offer was beaten.
The court ultimately concluded that the allowable costs for both parties were effectively equivalent ($131,633 for Mr. Singh and $128,500-$138,500 for Shoppers) and declined to order costs payable by either party.
