Smith v. Saskatoon (City), 2007 SKQB 177

• Judge: Rothery, J.
• Court: Court of Queen's Bench of Saskatchewan (Canada)
• Case Date: May 22, 2007
• Jurisdiction: Saskatchewan
• Citations: 2007 SKQB 177;(2007), 295 Sask.R. 138 (QB)

Smith v. Saskatoon (2007), 295 Sask.R. 138 (QB)

MLB headnote and full text

Temp. Cite: [2007] Sask.R. TBEd. MY.058

Richard James Smith (plaintiff) v. The City of Saskatoon (defendant)

Tracey Paulow and Leonard Paulow (plaintiffs) v. City of Saskatoon and Richard James Smith (defendants)

Lorena Rey (plaintiff) v. City of Saskatoon and Richard James Smith (defendants)

(2003 Q.B. Nos. 975; 1030; 1031; 2007 SKQB 177)

Indexed As: Smith v. Saskatoon (City)

Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench

Judicial Centre of Saskatoon

Rothery, J.

May 22, 2007.

Summary:

Smith owned a duplex in Saskatoon. The Paulows and Rey were tenants. As a result of a fire which destroyed much of the duplex and most of the tenants' contents, Smith, the Paulows, and Rey sued the City of Saskatoon. They alleged the fire was the result of the City's faulty electrical connectors on the overhead power line where the connection was made to the service mast on the outside of the duplex. The tenants also sued Smith for their losses. All three actions were heard together.

The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench allowed the actions against the City. The actions against Smith were dismissed. The court awarded damages to Rey of $29,000, to the Paulows of $38,000 and to Smith of $120,000 (subject to his insurer's subrogated claim).

Municipal Law - Topic 1818.1

Liability of municipalities - Negligence - Defences - Policy decisions - Smith owned a duplex in Saskatoon - The Paulows and Rey were tenants - As a result of a fire which destroyed much of the duplex and most of the tenants' contents, Smith, the Paulows, and Rey (the plaintiffs) sued the City of Saskatoon - They alleged that the fire was the result of the City's faulty electrical connectors on the overhead power line where the connection was made to the service mast on the outside of the duplex - The tenants had noticed some electrical problems and had notified Smith, but they had not notified the City - The Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench allowed the actions - The City's connectors had caused the fire - Given the large number of electrical connectors, the City had decided not to inspect the connectors and instead relied on customer complaints to determine whether one had to be replaced (policy decision) - The City had proved that its policy decision was reasonable - However, the plaintiffs were completely unaware that the City relied on them to alert the electrical department of potential problems with the connectors - Because the City was negligent in the operational aspect of its policy decision, it was liable to the plaintiffs for the damage they had incurred - The City's allegation that the plaintiffs were liable for contributory negligence in failing to report flickering lights to the electrical department was unfounded - See paragraphs 32 to 51.

Municipal Law - Topic 1819

Liability of municipalities - Negligence - Defences - Contributory negligence - [See Municipal Law - Topic 1818.1 ].

Cases Noticed:

Just v. British Columbia, [1989] 2 S.C.R. 1228; 103 N.R. 1, refd to. [para. 33].

Amos v. New Brunswick Electric Power Commission, [1977] 1 S.C.R. 500; 8 N.R. 537; 13 N.B.R.(2d) 307; 13 A.P.R. 307, refd to. [para. 34].

Brown v. British Columbia (Minister of Transportation and Highways), [1994] 1 S.C.R. 420; 164 N.R. 161; 42 B.C.A.C. 1; 67 W.A.C. 1, refd to. [para. 39].

Counsel:

H.J. Laing and R.C. Nicolay, for Richard Smith;

B. W. Wirth and K.M.K. Bodnarchuk, for the City of Saskatoon;

B.E. Nussbaum, for Lorena Rey and Tracy and Leonard Paulow.

These actions were heard by Rothery, J., of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench, Judicial Centre of Saskatoon, who delivered the following judgment on May 22, 2007.