October Luncheon - Rising to the Challenge of Vexatious Litigants

When:  Oct 23, 2019 from 11:30 AM to 02:30 PM (ET)
Associated with  Canadian Capital

Guest Speaker:

Anne Herriotts has 19 years of insurance industry experience, primarily as an independent adjuster handling commercial liability claims. The topic of vexatious litigants was introduced to Anne in a claim she handled many years ago and it has been a fascination for her ever since. Anne continues to work as an independent adjuster with Charles Taylor Adjusting in Ottawa, focusing on commercial liability. She is a member of CTA Canada’s Professional Lines Practice Group. She has recently spoken at RIMS Canada and at the Insurance Institute of Canada on Professional Liability.

Summary:

The Supreme Court of Canada has endorsed that self-represented litigants can expect accommodation in the court process. But sometimes “access to justice” goes out of control and litigants abuse the court system with claims and appeals that are ridiculous, unfounded, or just never ending. “Vexatious Litigant” describes a person who has been deemed by the courts to have abused the judicial system to such an extent that they have court access restrictions imposed on them. This presentation looks at how what makes a litigant “vexatious”, how the courts across Canada are dealing with the issue. There have been some big changes in the last couple of years that may change how we can respond when our clients are facing endless, baseless litigation.

Takeaways include:

  • Understanding the tension between “access to justice” and “abuse of the justice system” for self-represented litigants.
  • Gaining an overview of the court rules that define “vexatious litigants”
  • Key characteristics that may help you recognize a vexatious litigant early in the claim process.
  • How having court access restrictions placed on a vexatious litigant has worked in the past, and how it might work in the future
  • Lots of case law examples from jurisdictions across Canada.
  • RIBO Accreditation: 1 Technical Hour (Pending)

 

Date: October 23, 2019 11:30am-2:30pm

 

Location: Mill St. Brew Pub - 555 Wellington Street, Ottawa, ON K1R 1C5

Location

Mill St. Brew Pub
555 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON