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Unsuccessful plaintiffs ordered to pay defendants' costs, but defendants must pay third parties' costs.
Following the dismissal of the plaintiffs' personal injury action on summary judgment, the court determined the costs payable.
The defendants sought costs from the plaintiffs and argued the plaintiffs should also be liable for the costs of the third parties, whom the defendants had joined.
The court applied the general rule that an unsuccessful plaintiff is not responsible for the costs of third parties they did not sue, finding no exceptional circumstances to depart from this rule.
The plaintiffs were ordered to pay the defendants $44,000 in partial indemnity costs, while the defendants were ordered to pay the full costs claimed by the various third parties, totaling over $133,000.
Arbitration adjourned to consolidate staged accident claims; insurer ordered to pay $5,000 for late request.
The insurer brought a motion to adjourn the arbitration hearing to consolidate it with two other claims arising from the same alleged motor vehicle accident, which the insurer now claimed was staged.
The applicant opposed the adjournment, arguing prejudice due to the insurer's delay in raising the misrepresentation issue.
The arbitrator granted the adjournment sine die to allow for consolidation, noting the risk of diverging findings if the matters were heard separately.
To address the prejudice to the applicant caused by the late adjournment request, the arbitrator ordered the insurer to pay $5,000 in expenses thrown away, prohibited the filing of further evidence without leave, and made the new hearing dates peremptory to the insurer.
An application for accident benefits need not be on a specific form to trigger insurer obligations.
Four individuals injured in a motor vehicle accident received treatment from a chiropractor, who submitted OCF-23 forms to the appellant insurer.
The appellant argued these forms did not constitute a 'completed application for benefits' under s. 2 of O. Reg. 283/95.
The arbitrator and application judge found that the forms provided sufficient particulars to reasonably assist the insurer with processing the application and assessing the claim.
The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, confirming that an application need not be on a specific form to trigger the 'pay now, dispute later' obligation, provided it contains sufficient information to commence adjusting the claim.
Medical reports obtained after failed mediation are payable as arbitration expenses under the Insurance Act.
The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.
After mediation failed, the applicant applied for arbitration and obtained medical reports from an orthopaedic surgeon and a chiropractor.
The parties settled the substantive issues but disputed whether the cost of the medical reports were payable as arbitration expenses.
The arbitrator found that the reports were commissioned in contemplation of the arbitration proceeding to meet the applicant's evidentiary burden, rather than as examination expenses under section 24 of the Schedule.
The insurer was ordered to pay $1,200 for each report as arbitration expenses under subsection 282(11) of the Insurance Act.
