Davis Petroleum Equipment Ltd. v. Lombard General Insurance Company of Canada
The court held that the mere presence of the insured on property occupied and controlled by others for a limited purpose does not bring the pollutant escape within the Absolute Pollution Exclusion, and therefore the insurer has a duty to defend.
Source-derived case information.
- Citation
- C43832
- Parties
- Appellant: Lombard General Insurance Company of Canada; Respondent: Davis Petroleum Equipment Ltd.; Respondent: Gilbert Leo Rivard
- Court
- Court of Appeal for Ontario
- Jurisdiction
- Canada
- Judgment Date
- 2 March 2006
- Procedural Posture
- Civil / Appeal (court of Appeal)
- Outcome
- Appeal dismissed; motions judge's finding that insurer has a duty to defend affirmed; respondent awarded costs.
- Legal Topics
- Duty to Defend, Absolute Pollution Exclusion, Policy Interpretation, Coverage Dispute
- Source Language
- en
Source-derived case record
Summary, issues, holding and outcome
More case intelligence is available
Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.
Parties
Lombard General Insurance Company of Canada
Appellant
Davis Petroleum Equipment Ltd.
Respondent
Gilbert Leo Rivard
Respondent
Procedural Posture
Civil / Appeal (court of Appeal)
Legal Issues
- 1 Whether the escape of pollutants occurred "at or from any premises site or location which is or was at any time owned or occupied by, or rented or loaned to any Insured" such that the Absolute Pollution Exclusion applies and defeats the duty to defend.
Ratio Decidendi
The court held that the mere presence of the insured on property occupied and controlled by others for a limited purpose does not bring the pollutant escape within the Absolute Pollution Exclusion, and therefore the insurer has a duty to defend.
Court Disposition
Appeal dismissed; motions judge's finding that insurer has a duty to defend affirmed; respondent awarded costs.
Orders
- Appeal dismissed.
- Respondent entitled to costs fixed in the amount of $8,500.00.
Full Case Text
Judgment text and source record
1 paragraphs
Davis Petroleum Equipment Ltd. v. Lombard General Insurance Company of Canada Collection Decisions of the Court of Appeal Date 2006-03-02 Docket numbers C43832 Judges McMurtry, Roy; Feldman, Kathryn N.; Lang, Susan Elizabeth Subject Civil Decision Content DATE: 20060302 DOCKET: C43832 COURT OF APPEAL FOR ONTARIO RE: DAVIS PETROLEUM EQUIPMENT LTD. and GILBERT LEO RIVARD (Respondents) – and – LOMBARD GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY OF CANADA (Appellant) BEFORE: McMURTRY C.J.O., FELDMAN and LANG JJ.A. COUNSEL: W. Chalmers for the appellant G. Maille for the respondent HEARD & ENDORSED: March 1, 2006 On appeal from the judgment of Mr. Justice R.P. Boissonneault of The Superior Court of Justice dated April 22, 2005. APPEAL BOOK ENDORSEMENT [1] The key issue in this appeal is whether the escape of pollutants took place “at or from any premises site or location which is or was at any time owned or occupied by, or rented or loaned to any Insured” so as to fall within the “Absolute Pollutions Exclusion” clause of the insurance policy. In our view, the mere presence of the respondent insured for a limited purpose on property occupied and controlled by others does not exclude the coverage provided to the respondent. [2] We therefore conclude that the motions judge was correct in his finding that there is a duty to defend. [3] The appellant conceded that the “testing” exclusion would not affect the outcome of this appeal. [4] The appeal is therefore dismissed. The Respondent is entitled to costs fixed in the amount of $8,500.00.