Ewing (Litigation guardian of) v. Conte
This is an important decision involving an injured person’s ability to access justice without delay.
It involves a woman who suffered a catastrophic brain injury when she was hit by a motor vehicle as a pedestrian. The collision happened in Toronto. The case was commenced in Barrie, where trial dates are readily available. The defence brought a motion to transfer the trial to Toronto. The Toronto system is backlogged and a transfer to Toronto would have meant that the trial would be delayed for three years. Justice Vallee found that such a delay would be “shameful” in a case involving a seriously injured plaintiff and dismissed the defence motion.
Ewing v Conte et al,[ 2013] OJ No 3442, Dated Jul 30, 2013
About the Authors
Troy Lehman joined Oatley Vigmond in 2006 and became a partner in 2010. As a personal injury lawyer, his greatest satisfaction comes from helping people through to the other side of a difficult time in their lives. “We’re here to help and relieve stress,” Troy says. “When I walk into a first meeting with a client, people are often scared and anxious. And for me, the best thing that can happen at the end of the meeting is that they say, ‘I feel so much better.’
Adam Little earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto in 1996. He graduated from Queen’s University Faculty of Law in 2000 and was called to the bar in 2002. Adam was practicising on Bay Street for a leading Toronto litigation firm that represented doctors in medical malpractice claims when he realized that helping people through personal injury litigation was what he wanted to do. “I wanted to work for the best,” he said. A partner at Oatley Vigmond had written the best-known book available about addressing jury trials, which Adam had read and admired. He wrote to the partner, went through an intense interview process and became a partner at the firm in 2005.