Date: Tue, 16 Sep 2008 19:31

From: Jason Neyers

Subject: Aggravated and Punitive Damages

In A. v. Bottrill, the PC was asked to decide whether an award of punitive damages might be given for mere negligence. By a bare majority, they found that it could where that negligence was objectively outrageous.

Jason Neyers
Associate Professor of Law &  
Cassels Brock LLP Faculty Fellow in Contract Law
Faculty of Law
University of Western Ontario
N6A 3K7
(519) 661-2111 x. 88435

Adam Dodek wrote:

Two questions arose in my class today regarding Aggravated and Punitive Damages in connection with the case of B.(P.) v. B.(W.) (1992), 11 O.R. (3d) 161 (Gen. Div.) (Solomon, McInness, Chamberlain and Pitel, Casebook and Materials on the Law of Torts, 7th ed., pp. 33-35).

1. Has the quantum of damages for sexual assault / sexual abuse cases increased significantly since 1992? My feeling was no, but I would like to know what others think.

2. Does anyone have examples that come to mind of awards of aggravated or punitive damages in negligence? I see that Professor Fridman has one or two examples but they appear to be exceedingly rare.

Thank you.

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