Ontario's Superior Court has provided further direction on
the standard of care of occupiers, this time in the context of a
municipality operating a snow slide at a winter festival.
In Martin et al v The Corporation of the City of Barrie et
al, the slide was described as a large pile of snow capped off
with a decorative ice sculpture with separate chutes on which
guests would slide. The plaintiff descended the larger of two
slides and struck what she thought was a piece of ice hidden
underneath the snow. She sustained injury as a result.
The plaintiff testified that after she struck the piece of ice,
she heard a festival staff member indicate that the hole had to be
filled in 'again'. The plaintiff argued that this utterance
was proof that the slide was unsafe and that festival staff were
aware of the safety issue. Festival staff was provided with
training relating to slide maintenance and customer service issues,
and were on site to ensure proper use and to assist
