Profile

Colin is a partner in Blaney’s Insurance Coverage Counsel Group. His primary practice area relates to insurance coverage opinions and coverage litigation. His secondary practice area involves insurance related defence work and subrogation claims.

As coverage counsel, Colin provides advice and litigates in relation to liability policies of every description, including commercial general liability, automobile, homeowner and directors’ and officers’ policies. He also provides advice in relation to first party property policies. As defence counsel, Colin represents insured persons in all manner of personal injury and property damage cases.

Colin has appeared before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, the Court of Appeal, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal. Recently, Colin satisfied the Court of Appeal that the CGL automobile exclusion was applicable to an accident involving a ladder that fell off of a moving truck. The loading and unloading of the ladder were found to be automobile related activities and not a concurrent cause of the loss. (CUMIS General Insurance Co. v. 1319273 Ontario Ltd. 2008 ONCA 249)

Colin is widely published on insurance coverage issues. He has authored papers for and presented lectures at the Ontario Bar Association, the Canadian Institute, Canadian Defence Lawyers, Osgoode Hall Professional Development, University of Western Ontario, Ontario Risk and Insurance Managers Society and the Insurance Institute of Ontario. He has had articles published in the Canadian Insurance Law Reporter, the Canadian Journal of Insurance Law and Claims Canada magazine. Topics have included allocation of defence costs, coverage for long-tail environmental and sexual abuse claims, advertising liability and directors and officers coverage.

Colin is a contributor to The Annotated Commercial General Liability Policy, a text authored by Mark Lichty and Marcus Snowden, who are leading experts in relation to insurance coverage issues and partners at Blaney’s. Colin contributes to Property Damage Claims Under Commercial Insurance Policies by Richard Krempulec, who is also a leading insurance coverage lawyer and a partner at Blaney’s. Colin was one of the three original authors of Chapter 18 (Liability Insurance) of Insurance Law in Canada by Brown and Menezes, which Chapter has been favourably quoted by the Supreme Court of Canada in the Monenco case and by the Courts of Appeal of British Columbia, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick.

While at law school Colin received numerous academic prizes, scholarships and awards, including prizes in contracts law, criminal law, municipal law, advocacy and insurance law. Colin achieved the highest standing in first year and was on the Dean’s list for all three years of law school.

Significant Decisions

CUMIS General Insurance Co. v. 1319273 Ontario Ltd. 2008 ONCA 249, aff’g (2007), 84 O.R. (3d) 113 (S.C.J.)

• Successful application by insurer to apply automobile exclusion in CGL policy.

Moore v. Zenith Insurance, Ontario Superior Court of Justice, CV-07-0728-00

• Ruling that there was no coverage by operation of the automobile exclusion in a homeowner’s policy.

Hollinger International Inc. v. American Home Assurance Co. (2006), 34 C.C.L.I. (4th) 17, add’l reasons at 36, C.C.L.I. (4th) 273 (Ont. S.C.J.).

• Successful application by insurer to determine rights as between competing interests in the proceeds of insurance, including the “first past the post” principle.

Barnett v. Schindler Elevator Corp. Workplace Safety & Insurance Appeals Tribunal (April 20, 2004).

• Successful application regarding workers’ compensation defence.

Matt v. Barber (2002), 216 D.L.R. (4th) 524 (Ont. C.A.).

• Successful appeal barring Alberta Health from bringing subrogated claim in Ontario for health costs incurred by reason of an automobile accident.

Bouchard Paradis Inc. v. Market Insurance Co. of Canada (2000), 27 C.C.L.I. (3d) 243 (Ont. Master).

• Motion regarding scope of discovery in broker/insurer dispute.

Gore Mutual v. Markel Ins. Co. (1999), 12 C.C.L.I. (3d) 313 (Ont. S.C.J.).

• Successful motion regarding proper conduct of SABS priority of payment arbitration.

Gyselen v. Newchild International Inc., [1999] O.J. No. 1592 (S.C.J.).

• Successful motion to dismiss for delay, having established prejudice following destruction of evidence by third party.

Electric Colourfast Printing Corp. v. Citadel General Assurance Co., [1999], I.L.R. I-3640 (Ont. Gen. Div.).

• Defeated motion for summary judgment arising from application of alarm condition in policy.

Garger v. Day’s Inn of Toledo-Perrysberg (1997), 47 O.T.C. 79 (Gen. Div.). 

• Successful motion to dismiss by operation of limitation period in foreign jurisdiction.