Mediation is mandatory for Toronto actions. Of course, “mandatory mediation” is an oxymoron because mediation is supposed to be a voluntary process. Prior to May 1, 2017, a party could set an action down for trial provided that mediation was complete or scheduled. From May 1, 2017 onwards, mediation must be complete before an action […]
Author: Trial Lawyer Blog
On the Record, Episode 19 is about Juries. Mick Hassell interviews Brian Cameron, a personal injury lawyer at Oatley Vigmond. Over half of Superior Court trials are Jury trials and MVAs make up a large number of the Jury trials. Brian shares his thoughts on how Juries may assess cases and the potential impact of plaintiff advertising upon potential Jurors. […]
Bankruptcy ends more litigation and trials than it creates. In fact, bankruptcy should be considered as a possible defence in every case. Here are some Ontario Superior Court of Justice bankruptcy and insolvency statistics. The statistics reinforce how niche bankruptcy and insolvency litigation before the Courts is. Proceedings commenced: Set downs and pre-trial conferences: Bankruptcy […]
The concept of litigation portfolio management involves a lawyer or law firm viewing a group of litigation cases as a whole as opposed to considering cases one by one. Doing so means the lawyer or law firm can see the forest for the trees. In other words, the lawyer is looking at the big picture of the litigation environment […]
Are you thinking about sending an MVA case to trial? Make sure you’ve considered the following: Trial Resources Resources by a trial lawyer, available online: Trial Services If you would like legal advice from an experienced trial lawyer: Disclaimer This website and all resources are trial information, not trial legal advice. Copyright Notice © The content of […]
Jury trials and MVA trials are on the rise across Ontario. Here are some highlights: Source: Ministry of the Attorney General Looking ahead, with MVA trials dominating the Superior Court, it will be interesting to see how the LAT impacts MVA trial numbers. This is dependent on how many plaintiffs opted to go to Court […]
We read a lot about trials over here and recently stumbled upon a goldmine of advocacy and trial resources, including in podcast format. John Hollander runs The Advocacy Club based out of Ottawa. In addition to some very practical handbooks authored by John for Irwin Law, John also hosts podcasts on the issues of careers […]
Mick enjoyed presenting to the Ontario Paralegal Association (OPA) at their first memberships meeting of 2017 on January 28, 2017. He touched on two of his favourite topics: trial advocacy and cross-examination. Details on the presentation, including presentation slides and a curated selection of online trial resources for paralegals can be found here: www.trialcounsel.ca/OPA *The presentation […]
On the Record, Episode 18 is about trial preparation and attention to detail. Mick Hassell interviews Michael Giordano, a personal injury lawyer at Avanessy Giordano LLP. Michael shares a couple of stories from a 3 week personal injury Jury trial where attention to detail was crucial. By knowing the ins and outs of the file, including the accident benefits forms and property damage […]
Through the Ontario Civil Trial Manual, we’ve released some practical recommendations on how to select a civil Jury, such as how to obtain the list of potential Jurors and how to reorganize the list of potential Jurors for efficient Juror selection. Click here for full details on how to select a civil jury Hassell Trial Counsel is trial counsel for […]
On the Record, Episode 17 is about commercial arbitration. Mick Hassell interviews Alex Turner, a litigation lawyer at Bales Beall LLP, whose practice focuses on estate litigation, civil litigation and employment law. Alex’s interview is the first time Mick has interviewed an adversary – Alex and Mick battled in a commercial arbitration that went through a full hearing to an […]
If you’re going to trial in Ontario, you need to be aware of the need for and how to complete Evidence Act notices. These are not standard forms under the Rules of Civil Procedure or the Evidence Act. Through the Ontario Civil Trial Manual, we’ve released commentary and precedence notices: For information on Evidence Act notices […]
Through the Ontario Civil Trial Manual, we’ve released a detailed explanation of how to summons not only witnesses within Ontario but also witnesses across provincial boundaries using Ontario’s Interprovincial Summonses Act and corresponding legislation in other Provinces and Territories. Click here for full details on how to summons witnesses Hassell Trial Counsel is trial counsel for law firms […]
This is part 3 of a 3 part series on medical evidence to address threshold. Below is a precedent list of questions intended to make sure your medical expert addresses all aspects of Ontario Regulation 461/96 under the Insurance Act in their reports so that when trial comes about, there is fair warning to opposing […]
This is part 2 of a 3 part series on medical evidence to address threshold. Part 1 addresses questions that should be asked of experts in order to meet the requirements of mandatory evidence that must be led in order to meet threshold. Part 2 focuses on what areas must be covered by medical experts in answering the questions […]
This is part 1 of a 3 part series on medical evidence to address threshold. Personal injury lawyers know all too well that MVA clients must have a “permanent serious disfigurement” or a “permanent serious impairment of an important physical, mental or psychological function” in order to meet threshold (see section 267.5 of the Insurance […]
Below is an overview of some basic and key issues in employment law and wrongful dismissals. Union vs. Non-Union Union employee rights depend on the collective agreement. Union employees are obliged to deal with their union when terminated and will likely need to file a grievance within a short timeframe. Non-union employees can resort to private legal […]
Ryerson’s LPP teaches trial advocacy at a very high level. Recently, I was fortunate to participate as an advisor, assisting LPP candidates with cross-examination skills. The cross-examination workshop was led by Sheila Block and Jim Seckinger, who literally have decades of teaching trial advocacy internationally. Sitting in on the cross-examination demonstrations left several experienced trial lawyers wondering whether […]
Lions of the Trial Bar is several years old, but remains an entertaining read for trial war stories and attitudes towards trial practice. The article looks at a number of famous American trial attorneys. Some fun quotes follow the photograph below. “Any lawyer who tells you he’s never lost a case hasn’t really tried that many […]
On the Record, Episode 16 is about the expert witnesses and leveraging the Evidence Act. Mick Hassell interviews Justin Anisman, a lawyer at Mason Caplan Dizgun Roti LLP, where his practice focuses on complex litigation files. Justin recently enjoyed success advancing a case at trial where he was successful in knocking out the defendant’s expert. Justin’s expert had a hurdle to overcome because his expert was […]
If you are involved in civil litigation before the Superior Court, you may want to check out Civil Litigation D.I.Y. – a litigation book on how to value, assemble and settle lawsuits. While it is possible to amend a pleading at trial, the earlier you amend your pleading, the better. This article touches upon how […]
On the Record, Episode 15 is about the differences in Ontario Courts comparing smaller jurisdictions to larger ones. Mick Hassell interviews Geraldine Castle-Trudel, a criminal defence lawyer who defends cases across Ontario, in Quebec and Alberta. Gerry has defended cases at a significant number of Ontario’s Courts and shares insight on the differences in Courts across the province. Beyond differences […]
On the Record, Episode 14 is about the role of settlement counsel in litigation. Mick Hassell interviews Mitchell Rose, a mediator, lawyer and settlement counsel. The interview was conceived as a podcast battle of trial counsel vs. settlementcounsel. Mitch has great insight on the role of settlement counsel and has plans to launch a podcast of his own called […]
On the Record, Episode 13 is about costs awards in civil jury trials and the challenges created by the Solicitors Act in pursuing costs. Mick Hassell interviews Kris Bonn a personal injury, insurance disputes and criminal defence lawyer at Bonn Law. Kris explains how the Solicitors Act, which permits contingency fees, actually creates a hurdle in taking modest cases to trial. A 2-4 […]
On the Record, Episode 12 is about the right to silence, statements by the accused and voir dires. Mick Hassell interviews Scott Pearl a criminal defence lawyer at Edward H. Royle & Associates. Scott discusses statements by an accused to the Police and how such statements can be used at trial. One’s natural impulse, despite a Charter right to silence, is […]