From: Jason W Neyers <jneyers@uwo.ca>

Sent: Thursday 19 September 2024 17:38

To: obligations

Subject: ODG: Winnipeg Condo and Maple Leaf Foods

 

Dear Colleagues:

 

Those interested in pure economic loss in the context of building construction will find Centurion Apartment Properties Limited Partnership v. Sorenson Trilogy Engineering Ltd., 2024 BCCA 25 (CanLII) interesting: https://www.canlii.org/en/bc/bcca/doc/2024/2024bcca25/2024bcca25.html#BookMark223

 

In that case, the BCCA decided that although the SCC had said in MLF that the chain of contracts linking plaintiff to intermediate and intermediate to defendant (in this case subsequent owner and builder and builder and negligent architectural firm) were highly relevant to proximity between plaintiff and defendant in tort, this principle did not apply to buildings that were dangerous.  On the facts, this chain of contracts limited the liability of the architects to the builder to the fees paid by the builder (approx. $90,000) and the liability of the builder to the owner to $1 million. The court found that to take this chain into account, and thereby not allow full liability by the architects to the owner, would not just and fair .

 

The Supreme Court of Canada has refused leave.  It seems that if Justice Brown s intent in MLF was to import something akin to the Australian concept of vulnerability into the Canadian test of duty, to foreclose claims by sophisticated parties who could have protected themselves from pure economic loss, the BCCA misunderstood the message. The result in this case might be usefully compared to the lack of liability in Brookfield Multiplex Ltd v Owners Corporation Strata Plan 61288 [2014] HCA 36.

 

Sincerely,

 

esig-law

Jason Neyers
Professor of Law
Faculty of Law
Western University
Law Building Rm 26
e. jneyers@uwo.ca
t. 519.661.2111 (x88435)

 

 

 

 

You're receiving this message because you're a member of the obligations group from The University of Western Ontario. To take part in this conversation, reply all to this message.

 

View group files   |   Leave group   |   Learn more about Microsoft 365 Groups