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A plaintiff who unreasonably prolongs a claim against a non-liable defendant must pay costs.
This action arose from a slip and fall.
Defendant On-Site Maintenance & Repairs Inc., a winter maintenance contractor, brought a motion for dismissal based on formal and deemed admissions.
By the time of the hearing, the sole issue was costs.
The court found that the plaintiff failed to act reasonably in response to information indicating On-Site was not responsible for the area of the fall, and persisted in the claim despite opportunities to discontinue.
The court dismissed the action against On-Site and awarded costs to On-Site, emphasizing the plaintiff's unreasonable conduct in prolonging the litigation.
Insurer awarded $10,928.92 in expenses after successfully defending a minor injury guideline arbitration.
Following an arbitration where the insurer successfully argued that the applicant's impairments fell within the Minor Injury Guideline, both parties sought their expenses of the proceeding.
The arbitrator awarded expenses to the insurer, noting its complete success on the issues in dispute and its reasonable offers to settle made well before the hearing.
The arbitrator rejected the applicant's arguments that the insurer engaged in sharp practice or that novel issues were raised.
The insurer's claimed costs were reduced to reflect a more reasonable preparation-to-hearing time ratio and to comply with the maximum allowable disbursements for expert witnesses and travel under the Expense Regulation.
The insurer was awarded $10,928.92 inclusive of HST and disbursements.
Insurer awarded expenses after applicant withdrew accident benefits claim shortly before arbitration hearing.
The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for accident benefits.
After failing to attend scheduled insurer examinations and failing to provide requested documentation, the applicant withdrew her claims two business days before the scheduled arbitration hearing.
The insurer sought its expenses.
The arbitrator found that the applicant had unduly prolonged the proceedings and failed to attend required examinations.
The arbitrator awarded the insurer its arbitration assessment fee and a portion of its legal expenses, totaling $8,862.04 inclusive of HST and disbursements.
Insurer awarded $14,101.70 in arbitration expenses after successfully defending a claim for statutory accident benefits.
Following a decision denying the applicant's claim for statutory accident benefits, the insurer sought its expenses of the arbitration proceeding.
The applicant's representative was removed from the record and the applicant did not participate in the expense hearing.
The arbitrator awarded the insurer $14,101.70 in expenses, reducing the claimed amount due to excessive preparation time, duplication of effort, and unrecoverable disbursements such as court reporter fees.
Visitor’s voluntary reliance on Canadian family does not create insurance dependency.
Appeal from a private arbitrator’s priority decision under the Insurance Act and the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule.
The arbitrator held that an elderly foreign visitor injured as a pedestrian in Ontario was a dependant of his Canadian family and therefore required to claim statutory accident benefits from their insurer.
The court held that the arbitrator erred in law by focusing on the visitor’s inability to work in Canada due to his visa status while ignoring his substantial assets and ability to support himself in his home country.
The dependency analysis under the SABS requires a holistic assessment of the claimant’s financial resources and ability to be self‑supporting, including the voluntary nature of any alleged dependency.
Because the visitor’s reliance on his family arose solely from his voluntary stay in Canada, he was not their dependant for priority purposes.
