Canada Case Law

3311876 Nova Scotia Limited v. Trenton (Town)

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

The adjudicator correctly characterized the council's long‑term deferral of the culvert replacement as core policy decisions made bona fide and thus not actionable in negligence on the accepted evidence, but committed an error of law by failing to consider and decide the tort of nuisance; the appeal is allowed in part and the matter is remitted for rehearing on nuisance before a different adjudicator.

Source excerpt

• Negligence
• Nuisance
• Statutory immunity
• Municipal government act interpretation
• Duty of care
• Policy vs operational decisions

Read case analysis

Aylmer Meat Packers Inc. v. Ontario

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

The Ministry owed Aylmer a private law duty of care arising from specific interactions and targeting; the Ministry breached that duty by unreasonably occupying the plant for about 19 months and failing to address the spoilage and return of the premises within a reasonable period, and that wrongful occupation was a factual and legally foreseeable cause of Aylmer’s lost opportunity to sell the business; awarded $3,520,000 for loss of enterprise value while other losses tied to Aylmer’s illegal activities were not recoverable.

Source excerpt

• Duty of care
• Negligence - standard of care
• Causation
• Damages
• Public authority liability
• Anns/cooper two-stage test

Read case analysis

Lavery v. Community Living British Columbia

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court struck Margaret Lavery’s personal negligence claims against CLBC and related claims against the Garth Homer defendants, finding no pleaded duty of care to her.

• Duty of care
• Negligent infliction of mental distress
• Statutory immunity/liability of crown agencies
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Striking pleadings (rule 9-5)
• Aggravated and punitive damages

Read case analysis

3311876 Nova Scotia Limited v. Town of Trenton

Court

Nova Scotia Small Claims Court

The adjudicator held that the Town's repeated decisions to defer and prioritize other expenditures constituted policy decisions rather than operational negligence under the Anns/Cooper framework, and that MGA s.513(2) provides statutory immunity covering overflow from a watercourse or conduit (including the culvert), so the Claimant's negligence action fails and the claim is dismissed.

Source excerpt

• Municipal immunity (mga ss.513,514,515)
• Duty of care - anns/cooper test
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Flooding/infrastructure liability
• Assessment of damages

Read case analysis

Craigie v. Lehigh Hanson Materials Limited

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court held a ready-mix truck driver negligent for spilling cement on a Vancouver street and failing to warn or clean up. Lehigh was vicariously liable; the City was not.

• Duty of care
• Standard of care
• Contributory negligence
• Causation
• Voluntary assumption of duty
• Policy vs operational decisions

Read case analysis

Marchi v. Nelson (City of)

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

La Cour suprême de la Colombie-Britannique rejette l’action découlant d’une chute sur un banc de neige, concluant que la Ville a agi selon une politique bona fide et que le risque était apparent.

• Duty of care
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Snow removal operations
• Causation
• Standard of care
• Assumption of risk

Read case analysis

Khoury v. Vancouver (City)

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

Trial judgment in a slip-and-fall claim at VanDusen Botanical Garden: the court held the defendants took reasonable care and dismissed the action.

• Snow and ice hazards
• Duty of care
• Standard of care
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Causation
• Occupiers-liability

Read case analysis

Lynch v. Robertson

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court allowed third party proceedings against a road contractor and the Province, holding the proposed negligence and statutory-duty issues were fact-driven and not bound to fail on the pleadings.

• Third party notice
• Duty of care
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Statutory duty
• Road maintenance liability
• Third-party-notice

Read case analysis

Sullivan v. Victoria (City)

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court dismissed a pedestrian negligence claim against the City of Victoria, finding the plaintiff had not proved the sidewalk displacement breached the City’s policy or standard of care.

• Duty of care
• Standard of care
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Municipal inspection policy
• Causation
• Quantum

Read case analysis

Heaslip Estate v. Ontario

Court

Court of Appeal for Ontario

On the pleaded facts it was not plain and obvious that Ontario owed no private law duty of care; the specific allegations that Ontario knew of Patrick's life‑threatening condition, had a policy prioritizing life‑threatening cases, and failed to follow that policy when reassigning a nearby air ambulance are sufficient to establish arguable proximity and a prima facie duty of care. Broad allegations about failure to provide adequate system resources are public‑law claims and must be struck, but the specific operational negligence claim may proceed.

Source excerpt

• Duty of care
• Proximity
• Nonfeasance
• Policy vs operational decisions
• Statutory duties
• Air ambulance dispatch

Read case analysis