Disputes over additional insured status are legendary and frequent. Every insurer faces demands for a defence from additional insureds. Brokers are requested to issue certificates of insurance on a daily basis, identifying people or companies as additional insureds. Assigning insurance obligations is an essential feature of most contractual relationships. There is no avoiding the issue of the duty to defend an additional insured. Yet the outcomes of legal disputes about the issue have been unpredictable in the past and only recently has a trend towards more predictability emerged. On December 22, 2015, the Ontario Court of Appeal released its latest decision on the topic. While still not yet solving all of the problems in the area, it continues the trend towards a framework for insurers to resolve these disputes without unnecessary litigation.
Court of Appeal Provides a Further Look at the Additional Insured
March 2016
Blaney McMurtry LLP,
