Slip and Fall Cases Often Lost for Bad Reasons

January 17, 2017, Kitchener, Ontario

Posted by: Robert Deutschmann, Personal Injury Lawyer

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently considered the obligations of municipalities to maintain sidewalks in the case of Barbeau v. City of Kitchener. In this case the plaintiff tripped and fell on the uneven concrete sidewalks slabs. The plaintiff argued that the height difference of 26mm was greater than the acceptable 20 mm limit set out in the Provincial Minimum Maintenance Standards.

The City of Kitchener measured the jump and established that the difference in height between the two slabs was anywhere from 11-20 mm dependant upon where the slabs were measured. The Plaintiff had used a loonie to measure the difference in height to arrive at their estimate. The city of Kitchener argued in court that have an extensive system in place city wide to inspect and repair infrastructure. The City proved the system existed and was able to show the Court that they invest a large amount of money to repair sidewalks within their jurisdiction.

The Court ruled that although the defendant measured the sidewalk height differential, it was done in an unscientific way. The court determined that it preferred the Municipality’s more rigorous measures. As a result the Plaintiff lost the case.

The Court found no liability on the Municipality even though the height difference was on the cusp of the standard allowed. The Court also suggested that there is onus upon pedestrians to pay attention to the surface that they are walking on.

In any case where someone is injured in a slip and fall accident it is important to take pictures with something in them for scale, to take measurements, to record the events as they happened, and to get the names and addresses of any witness to the accident. Slip and Fall accidents cause thousands of serious injuries every year in Canada, and in many cases property owners are to blame.

About Deutschmann Law

Deutschmann Law serves South-Western Ontario with offices in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Woodstock, Brantford, Stratford and Ayr. The law practice of Robert Deutschmann focuses almost exclusively in personal injury and disability insurance matters. For more information, please visit www.deutschmannlaw.com or call us at 1-519-742-7774.