OFSCDRS 2015

The applicant's legal representatives, Yeung & Associates, brought a motion to withdraw from the proceeding after being unable to communicate with or obtain instructions from the applicant for several years.

The applicant failed to attend pre-hearing discussions and did not respond to the motion materials.

The insurer took no position on the motion.

The arbitrator granted the motion, permitting the representatives to withdraw due to a breakdown in the relationship.

The insurer brought a motion to stay an upcoming arbitration hearing regarding statutory accident benefits, arguing that the applicant had failed to produce necessary medical, educational, and employment records.

The applicant, who was injured as a child and now resides in the United States, claimed catastrophic impairment after a 14-year gap in treatment.

The arbitrator denied the stay at this time but ordered the production of the requested records from various third parties, including doctors and educational institutions.

The insurer was granted leave to renew the stay request if the documents are not produced 90 days before the hearing.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

At a preliminary hearing, the applicant, who was unrepresented, requested that her application be dismissed without an award of expenses as she could not afford to pursue the claim.

The arbitrator dismissed the application and the insurer subsequently sought $14,628 in expenses across four related files.

The arbitrator found the insurer's claimed amount to be excessive given the matter was dismissed at the preliminary stage.

The arbitrator awarded the insurer reasonable expenses fixed at $700 per applicant.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

At the preliminary issues hearing, the applicant, who was unrepresented, requested that his application be dismissed without an award of expenses as he could not afford to pursue the claim.

The insurer sought $14,628 in total expenses across four related dismissed claims.

The arbitrator found that the insurer was entitled to reasonable expenses because the applicant failed to pursue his claim.

However, the arbitrator deemed the requested amount excessive given the matter was dismissed at the preliminary stage.

The arbitrator fixed the insurer's expenses at $700.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

Her application for arbitration was dismissed at the preliminary hearing stage after she and her family members requested their applications be dismissed.

The insurer sought $14,628 in total expenses for the four related dismissed claims.

The arbitrator found the insurer's requested amount excessive given the claims were dismissed at the preliminary stage and the applicants were unrepresented and impecunious.

The arbitrator awarded the insurer $700 in expenses per applicant.

The applicant's claim for statutory accident benefits was previously dismissed after he abandoned the claim.

The insurer sought $14,628.00 in total expenses for this and three other related dismissed claims.

The applicant, who was unrepresented and impecunious, did not pursue the claim.

The arbitrator found the insurer's requested amount excessive given the matter was dismissed at the preliminary hearing stage.

The arbitrator ordered the applicant to pay the insurer's expenses fixed at $700.00.

The applicant sought expenses following an arbitration decision where she was partially successful in claiming housekeeping and home maintenance benefits.

The applicant claimed $15,537.50 in legal fees and $2,722.00 in disbursements.

The insurer argued each party should bear its own expenses.

The arbitrator considered the degree of success, settlement offers, and conduct during the proceeding under Rule 75 of the Dispute Resolution Practice Code.

Finding the applicant partially successful and the case not complex, the arbitrator awarded $3,000.00 for fees and $2,722.00 for disbursements, totaling $5,722.00.

In an arbitration for statutory accident benefits, a dispute arose over which party bears the obligation to produce expert witnesses for cross-examination on their reports.

The arbitrator held that the party tendering an expert report as evidence is responsible for producing the author for cross-examination by the opposing party.

Consequently, the applicant was ordered to produce his three experts, and the insurer was ordered to produce its expert.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and sought statutory accident benefits from the insurer.

After mediation failed, the applicant applied for arbitration.

The applicant's representative sought to be removed from the record due to a loss of contact and instructions from the applicant.

The applicant failed to attend the pre-hearing and the arbitration hearing.

The arbitrator granted the representative's motion to be removed from the record and dismissed the arbitration due to the applicant's failure to participate and present evidence.

The applicant was ordered to pay the insurer $500 in expenses.

The applicant applied for statutory accident benefits following a motor vehicle accident.

After mediation failed, she applied for arbitration at the Financial Services Commission of Ontario.

The applicant's counsel withdrew prior to the hearing, and the applicant failed to appear or communicate with the Commission.

The arbitrator proceeded in the applicant's absence and dismissed the application, as the applicant failed to meet her onus of proving entitlement to the claimed benefits.

The insurer was awarded $1,500 in expenses.

The applicant was allegedly injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

Following a breakdown in the relationship, the applicant's representative brought a motion to be removed from the record.

The insurer brought a motion to dismiss the arbitration due to the applicant's failure to participate.

The applicant did not attend the motions despite receiving notice.

The arbitrator granted the representative's motion to withdraw and dismissed the arbitration.

The applicant applied for statutory accident benefits following a motor vehicle accident.

His representative brought a motion to be removed from the record, and the insurer brought a motion to dismiss the arbitration due to the applicant's failure to participate.

The applicant did not attend the hearing despite receiving notice.

The arbitrator granted the representative's motion to withdraw and dismissed the arbitration due to the applicant's lack of interest and failure to present evidence.

The appellant insurer sought leave to appeal a preliminary arbitration decision, which was rejected by the Director's Delegate.

The respondent insured subsequently sought his legal expenses for successfully resisting the leave application.

The Delegate found that the respondent was entirely successful and that the appeal had delayed the resolution of substantive issues.

The Delegate awarded the respondent his legal expenses, finding the claimed hourly rates and time spent to be reasonable, and fixed the costs at $4,317.64 inclusive of HST.

The applicant applied for statutory accident benefits following a motor vehicle accident.

After her legal representative withdrew due to a breakdown in the solicitor-client relationship, the applicant failed to attend a pre-hearing discussion and the scheduled arbitration hearing.

As the applicant did not attend to present evidence, she failed to establish entitlement to the benefits claimed.

The arbitrator dismissed the claims and ordered the applicant to pay the insurer's arbitration expenses in the amount of $1,100.

The applicant applied for statutory accident benefits following a motor vehicle accident.

After failing to attend two pre-hearing conferences and the scheduled arbitration hearing, the applicant's counsel was permitted to withdraw from the proceeding.

As no one appeared on behalf of the applicant to tender evidence, the arbitrator dismissed the claims for non-earner and medical benefits.

The applicant was ordered to pay $1,500 for the insurer's arbitration expenses.

The appellant insurer sought a stay of an arbitrator's decision which found that mileage and parking expenses incurred by the respondent's spouse while providing attendant care services constituted an economic loss under the Statutory Accident Benefits Schedule.

The Director's Delegate applied the Armstrong criteria and denied the stay, finding that the appellant failed to provide evidence of hardship if the stay were refused, and noting the significant prejudice to the respondent caused by the delay in receiving benefits.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and sought statutory accident benefits, claiming he sustained a catastrophic impairment due to a mental disorder.

The insurer argued the mental disorder was genetically based and not caused by the accident.

The Arbitrator found that the accident caused the applicant's mental disorders, which resulted in a marked impairment of his ability to function, meeting the definition of catastrophic impairment.

The applicant was awarded attendant care benefits at a reduced rate, as he did not require round-the-clock care.

Claims for Botox injections and a special award were dismissed.

The applicant was injured in a motor vehicle accident and applied for statutory accident benefits.

After mediation failed, the applicant applied for arbitration.

The applicant's counsel withdrew from the record due to an inability to obtain instructions.

The applicant subsequently failed to attend a pre-hearing and a preliminary issue hearing, despite receiving proper notice.

The arbitrator found that the applicant had abandoned the proceeding and dismissed the application for arbitration.

No costs were awarded.

The appellant, who was injured in a motor vehicle accident at age 10, appealed an Arbitrator's decision denying him non-earner benefits (NEBs) under the SABS-1996.

The Arbitrator found that the appellant did not suffer a complete inability to carry on a normal life within 104 weeks of the accident, nor when he turned 16.

The appellant argued that the insurer's failure to provide proper notices of refusal procedurally entitled him to benefits.

The Director's Delegate upheld the Arbitrator's decision, confirming that under the Court of Appeal's decision in Stranges, procedural breaches by an insurer do not automatically entitle an insured to benefits without proving substantive entitlement.

The appeal was dismissed.

The applicants claimed statutory accident benefits following a reported hit-and-run motor vehicle collision.

The insurer denied the claims, arguing the applicants were not involved in an 'accident' as defined in the Schedule and putting them to strict proof that the collision occurred as reported.

Following a preliminary issue hearing, the arbitrator found the applicants' evidence credible and corroborated by circumstantial evidence, while finding the insurer's accident reconstruction evidence unpersuasive.

The arbitrator concluded that the applicants were involved in an accidental collision and were therefore involved in an 'accident' under subsection 2(1) of the Schedule.