Financial Services Commission des

Commission services financiers

of Ontario de l’Ontario

Neutral Citation: 2017 ONFSCDRS 84

FSCO A16-002467

BETWEEN:

SHENNE MORRISON

Applicant

and

AVIVA CANADA INC.

Insurer

Before: Arbitrator Ellen Fry

Heard: By teleconference call on March 15, 2017

Appearances: Ms. Shenne Morrison did not participate

Ms. Amanda Faulkner participated for Aviva Canada Inc.

Issues:

The Applicant, Ms. Shenne Morrison, was injured in a motor vehicle accident on February 24, 2013 and sought accident benefits from Aviva Canada Inc. (“Aviva”), payable under the Schedule.¹ The parties were unable to resolve their disputes through mediation, and Ms. Shenne Morrison, through her representative at that time, applied for arbitration at the Financial Services Commission of Ontario under the Insurance Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. I.8, as amended.

The issues in this Hearing are:

Should Ms. Shenne Morrison’s Application for Arbitration be dismissed?
Should expenses be awarded to Aviva?

Result:

Ms. Shenne Morrison’s Application for Arbitration is dismissed.
Expenses in the amount of $675.00 are awarded to Aviva.

EVIDENCE AND ANALYSIS:

Chronology

A Pre-Hearing discussion in this case was held on January 27, 2017, at which Ms. Shenne Morrison failed to appear.

On February 1, 2017, I sent a letter to Ms. Shenne Morrison at her last known address to advise her of the missed Pre-Hearing discussion. The letter provided Ms. Shenne Morrison with an Attendance Notice, setting a date of March 15, 2017 at 9:30 a.m., via teleconference, to hear the issues identified in the Application for Arbitration. The letter also advised her that should she not contact our office or participate in any further proceedings, I would dismiss her Application for Arbitration and consider the Insurer’s request for expenses.

The Dismissal

For the reasons that follow, Ms. Shenne Morrison’s Application for Arbitration is dismissed.

As of March 15, 2017 at 9:30 a.m., I was unable to contact Ms. Shenne Morrison, she had yet to contact a legal representative or ADR Chambers as requested, and had not participated in any of the Arbitration proceedings.

I am satisfied that Ms. Shenne Morrison was given notice of all of the proceedings related to her Application for Arbitration at her last known address.

Pursuant to Rule 37.7 of the Dispute Resolution Practice Code, the Arbitration Hearing proceeded in her absence.

Ms. Shenne Morrison bears the onus of proving entitlement to the claimed benefits. Since she did not appear at the Hearing and no evidence was presented to support her claims, this Application for Arbitration is dismissed.

EXPENSES:

Counsel for Aviva requested expenses for 4.5 hours of counsel fees. Given the fact that the Application is dismissed, and hence that the Insurer has been successful in this proceeding, it is appropriate to award expenses to Aviva. Rule 78 of the Dispute Resolution Practice Code prescribes the amount that may be awarded for expenses. I am satisfied that it is appropriate to award an hourly rate of $150.00 per hour, which is the maximum amount permitted by Rule 78. Accordingly, I award expenses to Aviva in the amount of $675.00.

March 20, 2017

Ellen Fry

Arbitrator

Date