Jury Striking And The Statutory Deductible: Rumney V Nelson, 2021 ONSC 5632

The recent decision of Rumney v Nelson, 2021 ONSC 5632 out of Orangeville is yet another case where the Defendant's jury notice was conditionally struck. Interestingly, this case has the added bonus of a discussion about whether a jury should be advised of the statutory deductible in motor vehicle collision cases.

Background

The action arose from a 2012 rear-ending motor vehicle collision. At the time of the motion hearing, the action was scheduled to be tried before a judge and jury in October 2021 and expected to last 4 weeks.

Jury Striking

Due to the ongoing COVID pandemic, the Plaintiff sought a conditional order to strike the Defendant's jury notice. If the Court is not permitting civil jury trials in Orangeville when the matter is called for trial, then the matter would proceed anyways – but without a jury. On the other hand, if jury trials are permitted when the matter is called for trial, then it would proceed with a jury.