CLE Online

Course Introduction and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:10)

Raymond Lee — Program Lawyer, CLEBC, Vancouver
Michael Parrish — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver

Case Commentary on Ding v. Prevost, 2022 BCSC 215 (9:10 – 9:55)

• facts and background
• nature of plaintiffs' product liability claims
• fact and expert evidence
• key legal and evidentiary issues

Nigel L. Trevethan — Harper Grey LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (9:55 – 10:00)

Update on Product Liability Case Law in Canada (10:00 – 10:45)

• negligent design
• negligent manufacture
• failure to warn
• duty and standard of care

Michael Parrish — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (10:45 – 10:50)

Prosecuting and Defending Product Liability Claims (10:50 – 11:35)

• plaintiff's theory of liability
• proving the defect—sources of evidence
• failure to warn claims
• liability for subsidiaries and suppliers
• indemnity agreements

Allison K. Foord — Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Vancouver
Sam Jaworski — Slater Vecchio LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (11:35 – 11:40)

Examining and Defending the Corporate Representative (11:40 – 12:25)

• product design, testing, and certification
• manuals and warnings
• similar incidents, litigation 
• recalls and subsequent re-design 
• relevance/ applicability of "reptile theory" questions in Canada

David L. Campbell — Bowman and Brooke LLP, Detroit, Michigan
Laura E. Jones — Camp Fiorante Matthews Mogerman LLP, Vancouver

LUNCH (12:25 – 1:00)

Expert Evidence in Product Liability Cases (1:00 – 1:45)

• proving and defending claims with expert evidence
• common types of expert evidence 
• site and product examination and testing 
• using exemplars and surrogates
• common admissibility issues

Marc Kazimirski — KazLaw Injury Lawyers, Vancouver

BREAK (1:45 – 1:50)

Regulators, Regulatory Reporting, and Recalls (1:50 – 2:20)

• regulatory requirements in product design and certification
• overview of the key regulatory regimes
• regulatory reporting and compliance
• recalls and other remedial measures
• communicating with regulators

Lisa Parliament — McMillan LLP, Toronto

BREAK (2:20 – 2:25)

Product Liability Class Actions (2:25 – 3:10)

• claim trends in BC and Ontario
• certification trends
• causes of action
• identifiable class
• evidence, evidence, evidence
• interpretation of Maple Leaf: two Canadas
• recalls and preferability: the end of the road?

Katherine Booth — McCarthy Tétrault, Vancouver 
Jill S. Yates — McCarthy Tétrault, Vancouver 

Closing Remarks (3:10 – 3:15)

Michael Parrish — Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Vancouver