Topic Liability
Aviva loses bid to quash class action for COVID-related BI losses
March 28, 2023 by David GambrillOntario’s Superior Court has certified a class action lawsuit by a window and door manufacturer against Aviva Canada related to the insurer’s broad denial of pandemic-related business interruption claims. In doing so, the court rejected Aviva’s motion to have the…
Questions raised about safety of Old Montreal building destroyed by fatal fire
March 27, 2023 by Morgan Lowrie - THE CANADIAN PRESSMONTREAL – More than a week after a fatal fire tore through a building in Old Montreal, accounts from former tenants and victims of the blaze are raising questions about the safety of the heritage property. Five bodies had been…
Latest Supreme Court ruling may reduce liability risk due to impaired drivers
March 27, 2023 by David GambrillCanada’s top court has restored the impaired driving conviction of an Ontario ATV driver, whose Charter rights were violated when the police pulled him over on a shared private driveway instead of a public highway. The case is of interest…
Ottawa requests joint ‘working group’ on oilsands contamination with Alberta
March 20, 2023 by Bob Weber - THE CANADIAN PRESSFederal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault has further spelled out what he wants to see in a new body that would oversee monitoring and communications around pollution problems in the oilsands. In a letter dated March 16 to his Alberta counterpart…
Insurers urged to prepare for ‘metaverse’ liability
March 17, 2023 by David GambrillMost insurers are concerned about existing digital liability risks, but in as few as three years, they may be confronting commercial liability risks associated with immersive virtual environments known as the ‘metaverse,’ a Geneva Association (GA) survey of liability insurance…
A U.K. climate lawsuit Canadian D&O insurers may be following
March 15, 2023 by David GambrillA recent U.K.-based, climate lawsuit launched against Shell plc’s board of directors by NGO ClientEarth may lead to “copycat” litigation in Canada, lawyers warn, potentially affecting the D&O line of commercial insurance. “Corporate climate litigation is still in its infancy…
Cyberattack hits Canadian engineering giant with contracts for military bases, power plants
March 9, 2023 by Lee Berthiaume - THE CANADIAN PRESSOTTAWA – A Canadian engineering giant whose work involves critical military, power and transportation infrastructure across the country has been hit with a ransomware attack. Toronto-based Black & McDonald has so far refused to publicly comment on the cyberattack, while…
What the industry says about regulator’s draft corporate culture guidance
March 7, 2023 by David GambrillCanada’s solvency regulator has refined its proposed guidance on corporate culture for P&C insurers, and it’s now consulting with the industry about its expectations. The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) was scheduled to have a technical briefing…
How CSIO’s forging consistent data standards interpretation
March 6, 2023 by David GambrillThe Centre for Study of Insurance Operations (CSIO)’s mandate has evolved to ensure consistent interpretation of the property & casualty (P&C) insurance industry’s data standards by insurance companies and technology vendors. “In developing the multi-year strategic plan, CSIO’s board of…
Autonomous truck insurance questions remain
March 3, 2023 by James Menzies, Editor, Today's TruckingA panel discussion at the Technology & Maintenance Council’s spring meeting revealed some things won’t change when it comes to insuring autonomously driven trucks. Others will. And there’s still a lot of unknowns. Some of the liability for crashes will…
Why your commercial clients may be at risk of ESG legal action
March 1, 2023 by Alyssa DiSabatinoCanadian law firms are preparing for an uptick in environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-related legal cases, based on the rise of such cases in the U.S., a litigator tells Canadian Underwriter. ESG lawsuits occur when a company is taken to…
Oil well cleanup program listed as ‘key objective’ in Alberta’s pre-election budget
March 1, 2023 by Bob Weber - THE CANADIAN PRESSEDMONTON – Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s last budget before an expected spring election gives strong support to a proposed tax break for energy companies to fulfill their legal cleanup duties but doesn’t tell voters how much would be spent on…