On April 23, 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada granted leave to
appeal in Bradfield v Royal Sun Alliance Insurance
Company, 2019 ONCA 800, and thereby signaled its intent to
consider the circumstances in which an insurer may deny coverage
for a claim it has been defending without a reservation of
rights.
Bradfield and Devecseri were riding their motorcycles when
Devecseri struck an oncoming vehicle driven by Caton. Devecseri
died in the accident, and Caton brought a claim for damages against
Bradfield and Devecseri's estate. The estate was defended by
Devecseri's automobile insurer, Royal Sun Alliance Insurance
Company ("RSA").
RSA appointed an adjuster to investigate. Despite undertaking
other inquiries, the adjuster did not obtain the Coroner's
report, which was available shortly after the 2006 accident. Caton
commenced his claim in 2008 and Examinations for Discovery were
conducted in 2009 at which time RSA discovered that its insured,
Devecseri, had consumed
