Category Archives: Duty to Defend

Cases dealing with “duty to defend” arising under various types of insurance policies.

C.A. Rejects Insurer’s Interpretation of “Anti-concurrent causation” clause

Posted on March 2, 2008 by Stephen Cavanagh

Addendum: On July 31, 2008, the Supreme Court of Canada refused leave to appeal from the decision of the Court of Appeal that was discussed in this post. In Appin Realty Corporation Limited v. Economical Mutual Insurance Company, the Court … Continue reading →

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Court Orders Home Insurer to Defend Claim Arising Out of ATV Accident

Posted on January 10, 2008 by Stephen Cavanagh

In Economical Insurance Group v. Fleming, Mr. Justice Keith A. Hoilett heard an application brought by Economical Mutual Insurance, for a declaration that it owed no duty to defend its insureds against a claim brought on behalf of a teenaged … Continue reading →

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Court Applies Derksen to Order Defence by Both CGL and Auto Policies

Posted on November 1, 2007 by Stephen Cavanagh

In Derksen v. 539938 Ontario Limited, the Supreme Court of Canada ordered both an auto and a CGL insurer to defend a personal injury action. It determined that there had been concurrent causes of the injuries, one covered by the … Continue reading →

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C.A. Says No Allocation Between Primary and Excess Insurers

Posted on June 27, 2007 by Stephen Cavanagh

In McKenzie v. Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, released today, the Court of Appeal clarified the law with respect to overlapping insurance coverage and the order in which liability insurance policies must respond to a claim. In the Supreme … Continue reading →

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Passengers in Car Entitled to Liability Insurance Coverage for Claim by Inline Skater

Posted on February 27, 2007 by Stephen Cavanagh

In Morrow v. Symons, a young man was seriously injured while being towed on inline skates. He sued the driver of the car towing him, as well as three your men who were occupants of the car at the time. … Continue reading →

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Driver of Go-kart Entitled to Liability Coverage Under Auto Policy

Posted on January 11, 2007 by Stephen Cavanagh

FURTHER UPDATE–We understand that the appeal from this decision was heard by the Court of Appeal on October 31, 2007. We’ll report on the appeal decision as soon as it becomes available. UPDATED–Since the original post, some additional discussion of the … Continue reading →

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Negligent Placement of Ladder on Roof of Truck Excluded Under CGL

Posted on November 30, 2006 by Stephen Cavanagh

In Cumis General Insurance Company v. 1319273 Ontario Ltd., Mr. Justice David Brown dealt with an interesting coverage dispute. Cumis had applied for a ruling on whether it owed a duty to defend its insured, the numbered company, in an … Continue reading →

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1991 Installation of Fireplace Held to be ‘Accident’ Triggering Coverage for 2003 Fire Claim

Posted on June 14, 2006 by Stephen Cavanagh

    [This post contains a correction at the end, dealing with the apportionment of contributions between the two policies. We had previously said that contribution by equal shares had been ordered; in fact, Power J. ordered proportionate contribution by policy … Continue reading →

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S.C.C. Weighs In on Claims-Made Policies

Posted on June 5, 2006 by Stephen Cavanagh

The Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Jesuit Fathers of Upper Canada v. Guardian Insurance last Thursday. This is an important decision for anyone working or practising in the field of insurance law. In addition to its adjudication … Continue reading →

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“Insured v. Insured” Exclusion Doesn’t Apply to Claim by Insured’s Liquidator

Posted on May 24, 2006 by Stephen Cavanagh

Markham General Insurance Company was ordered wound up in July, 2002. The liquidator of Markham is now suing its former directors and officers, alleging that they negligently managed the company. Those defendants, in turn, had D & O coverage with … Continue reading →

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