The stage was set. The tug-of-war pitted 20 or so trailer renters against 20 or so cottage renters. Disaster ensued.
In Bonello v. Gores Landing Marina (1986) Limited, 2017 ONCA 632, the Plaintiff, Timothy Bonello ("Bonello"), sought relief from an injury arising from a game of tug-of-war. Bonello put his left arm through one of the loops on the rope to get a better grip, but when the participants pulled the rope on each side, the loop closed and crushed Bonello's arm. Unfortunately, this injury resulted in the amputation of his forearm. The contest took place on a campground owned and operated by Gores Landing Marina (the "Marina"). The rope used for the contest was found by Joseph Davies Jr. ("Davies Junior") in a shed located on the Marina's property.
The Litigation
Bonello brought an action against several parties, including the
Marina, Davies Junior and Joseph Davies Sr. ("Davies
Senior"), the principal of the Marina. In Bonello's claim,
he asserted that the Marina and Davies Senior were negligent and
also liable pursuant to the Occupiers' Liability Act.
In addition, Bonello claimed that the defendants were vicariously
liable for the negligent actions of Davies Junior. The Marina and
Davies Senior responded with a summary judgment motion to dismiss
the action.
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The motion judge found in favour of the moving party and dismissed Bonello's claim. Bonello appealed the motion judge's order to the Ontario Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal allowed the Plaintiff's appeal, set aside the motion judge's order, and consequently allowed Bonello to continue his claim. Analysis The ONCA considered whether the motion judge erred by excluding the aforementioned discovery evidence. There are two relevant Rules of Civil Procedure with respect to the admission of discovery evidence. Rule 39.04 with motions and Rule 31.11 that deals with trials. Rule 39.04: (1) On the hearing of a
motion, a party may use in evidence an adverse party's
examination for discovery or the examination for discovery of any
person examined on behalf or in place of, or in addition to, the
adverse party and rule 31.11 applies with necessary
modifications. The key distinction is that Rule 39.04 allows a party to use evidence provided through discovery of any adverse party against the adverse party. In contrast, Rule 31.11 only allows evidence provided by the adverse party during their discovery to be used against them. The ONCA ruled that the motion judge erred in allowing the wording in Rule 31.11 to override the wording in 39.04. As a result of this error, the respondents' assertion that Davies Junior had no connection to the Marina was left to be taken at face value which then led to the conclusion that the Marina could not be held vicariously liable for Davies Junior as will be discussed below.
The ONCA also considered whether the motion judge erred in concluding that there was no genuine issue requiring a trial. To do so, the ONCA reviewed whether the motion judge addressed the following three substantive issues:
Conclusion This case is a cautionary tale for defendants that may be tangentially connected to litigation to consider the appropriateness of summary judgment. Litigants often seek clarity from counsel as to the likelihood of success on a summary judgment motion, given the tendency to prefer shutting down litigation as opposed to being dragged along when there is ostensibly no liability. This case supports the proposition that the only certain thing in litigation is uncertainty. |
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.