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ARTICLE · 28 AUGUST 2024

Who's The Owner? Who's Liable? Harris v. Ward

McCague Borlack LLP
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The issue of vicarious liability in contractual relationships was called into question in the British Columbia Court of Appeal when a tragic car accident required the court to consider the parties'

CanadaLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Angela Ribarich
Angela Ribarich
Howard Borlack
Howard Borlack
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The issue of vicarious liability in contractual relationships was called into question in the British Columbia Court of Appeal when a tragic car accident required the court to consider the parties' intentions when entering the contract and the purpose of the applicable legislation.

Facts

In the case of Harris v. Ward1, a customer had entered the dealership looking to trade in her old car and purchase a new one. The defendant car dealership had allowed the customer to keep possession of the new car for 10 days while the dealership tried to find financing that would allow the customer to purchase the vehicle. The dealership knew that the customer was only conditionally approved, however, it had done business with her in the past and was confident that financing would go through.

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