Topic
Legal
Consumer can seek class action certification, despite contract fine print: Supreme Court
March 18, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that a B.C. woman can still launch a class action lawsuit against her cellphone provider, even though the fine print of her contract had a clause that waived her right to sue.In Seidel…
Argentina changes reinsurance rules: reinsurance must be purchased through national or registered reinsurers
March 11, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterArgentina has changed its reinsurance rules, cautions the insurance broker Marsh.“Argentine Superintendency (SSN) mandated last month that reinsurance in Argentina must be purchased through national or registered reinsurers,” Marsh Canada notes on its Web site. “This resolution follows the measures…
Common law spouse of husband who dies of injuries sustained in home fire cannot receive full home insurance payout until estranged children of spouse are contacted: judge
March 10, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterThe widow of a common-law husband, who died without a Will as a result of injuries from a fire that engulfed their insured home, cannot receive the balance of the home insurance payment until her husband’s estranged children can be…
Court voids claims waiver based on power imbalance between adjuster and plaintiff
March 9, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Ontario Superior Court of Justice has voided a release waiving all claims against a defendant and his insurer in an auto accident claim, based on the fact that the insurance adjuster had used his unequal bargaining power to lowball…
Insured doesn’t know about policy cancellation if registered notification comes back as “unclaimed”: arbitrator
March 8, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterAn insurance company cannot presume a policyholder knows his or her insurance has been cancelled when a registered letter informing the insured about the cancellation is stamped “unclaimed” by Canada Post, an Ontario arbitrator has found.Marcia Walker was injured in…
B.C. judge cautions defence bar against swearing affidavits on behalf of clients
March 7, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterA British Columbia judge has cautioned the insurance defence bar that lawyers should not be swearing affidavits on behalf of clients, except in the most limited of circumstances, and doing so might result in the waiver of solicitor-client privilege.British Columbia…
International business law firms seek to enter Canadian space through tie-ins with Canadian insurance and business law firms
March 7, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterInternational business law firms are aiming to make their way into the Canadian market through tie-ins with local Canadian law firms, including firms working in the insurance area.Most recently, legal media reported United Kingdom insurance specialist Clyde & Co is…
Insurers may want to “try hardest” to settle claims with self-represented litigants: judge
March 4, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterGiven the additional time, effort and expense required to try cases involving self-represented litigants, insurers might want to give special consideration to settling these cases early, a Nova Scotia judge observed at the Canadian Defence Lawyers 7th Annual Insurance Symposium…
Good faith claims may just ‘distract’ from common law principles that apply to insurance contracts: lawyer
March 4, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterAn insurer’s duty to act in good faith may not actually mean much beyond the standard common law doctrines that apply to insurance contracts, according to Roderick Winsor of Blaney McMurtry LLP.Winsor is the author of Good Faith in Canadian…
Ontario Court of Appeal holds up marijuana exclusion clause
March 2, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Ontario Court of Appeal has upheld a marijuana exclusion clause when landlords tried to make a claim for damages arising from an explosion on their property caused by a tenant running a marijuana grow-up.In Pietrangelo v. Gore Mutual Insurance…
FSCO settlement related to IRBs can be deducted from a court award, not a settlement related to disability benefits: Ontario court
March 2, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterThe Ontario Court of Justice has ruled that a FSCO settlement for income replacement benefits (IRBs) counts as a “collateral benefit” and is therefore deductible from a court award, but a settlement from the Ontario Superior Court related to short-…
Insurers should think beyond compliance and remediate fuel spills to pre-spill conditions: environmental lawyer
March 1, 2011 by Canadian UnderwriterInsurers should consider the multiple benefits of remediating fuel spills to pre-spill conditions, even if new Canadian regulatory guidelines for handling and cleaning fuel spill sites apply to contaminated and Brownfield sites and not to domestic fuel spills.John Tidball, environmental…