Case information
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36919
Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company v. Mariette Émond and Victor Foisy, et al.
(Quebec) (Civil) (By Leave)
Docket
Judgments on applications for leave to appeal are rendered by the Court, but are not necessarily unanimous.
| Date | Proceeding | Filed By (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 2017-04-20 | Appeal closed | |
| 2017-04-13 | Transcript received, 96 pages | |
| 2017-03-30 | Formal judgment sent to the registrar of the court of appeal and all parties | |
| 2017-03-30 | Judgment on appeal and notice of deposit of judgment sent to all parties | |
| 2017-03-29 |
Judgment on the appeal rendered, Abe Mo Ka Wa Ga Côt Br, The appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montréal), Number 500-09-024401-143, 2016 QCCA 161, dated February 2, 2016, was heard on March 29, 2017, and the Court on that day delivered the following judgment orally: [TRANSLATION] WAGNER J. — The appellant argues that the broad exclusion clause in the accident insurance contract to the effect that the insurer will pay no benefits if an accident occurred while the insured was participating in an indictable offence may be set up against the heirs of the insured. In this case, the offences of which the insured could have been convicted had he not died are hybrid offences that the Crown may choose to prosecute either as summary conviction offences or as indictable offences. For the reasons given by the Court of Appeal, we are all of the opinion that the exclusion from the insurance policy based on art. 2402 of the Civil Code of Québec may not be set up against the heirs of the insured, as that article must, even in light of s. 34(1) of the federal Interpretation Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. I-21, be interpreted having regard to the principles of interpretation that apply in the area of insurance law so as to favour the precision and certainty of the grounds for exclusion in such matters. On this basis, art. 2402 of the Civil Code of Québec concerns only indictable offences, those that are punishable exclusively by way of indictment, and not, as in this case, hybrid offences. For these reasons, the appeal is dismissed with costs. Dismissed, with costs |
|
| 2017-03-29 |
Hearing of the appeal, 2017-03-29, Abe Mo Ka Wa Ga Côt Br Judgment rendered |
|
| 2017-03-29 | Respondent's condensed book, (Book Form), (14 copies) Submitted in courtroom (2 books) | Léon H. Moubayed |
| 2017-03-28 | Appellant's condensed book, (Book Form), (14 copies) Distributed in courtroom | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2017-03-28 | Correspondence received from, (Letter Form), Léon H. Mobayed (by email). Letter regarding the reference to a new authoritie. , (Electronic version filed on 2017-03-28) | Léon H. Moubayed |
| 2017-03-27 | Notice of appearance, (Letter Form), Mr. Léon H. Moubayed will be appearing and presenting oral argument. (5 reserved seats) | Léon H. Moubayed |
| 2017-03-08 | Notice of appearance, Maria Isabel Garcia sera présente à l'audition. | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2017-02-15 | Correspondence received from, Amicus Curiae, amended pages in factum received correcting typos. | Léon H. Moubayed |
| 2017-02-08 | Appeal perfected for hearing | |
| 2017-02-03 | Amicus curiae's book of authorities, (Book Form), (3 volumes), Completed on: 2017-02-03 | Léon H. Moubayed |
| 2017-02-03 | Amicus curiae's factum, (Book Form), replacement pages 13, 34, 41 and 42 inserted into the factum., Completed on: 2017-02-03 | Léon H. Moubayed |
| 2016-11-28 | Notice of hearing sent to parties | |
| 2016-11-22 | Certificate of counsel (attesting to record) | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-11-22 | Appellant's book of authorities, (Book Form), Completed on: 2016-11-22 | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-11-22 | Appellant's record, (Book Form), Completed on: 2016-11-22 | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-11-22 | Appellant's factum, (Book Form), Completed on: 2016-11-22 | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-11-22 | Correspondence (sent by the Court) to, Me Léon H. Moubayed (amicus curiae), Re: his role in the appeal | |
| 2016-11-16 | Letter advising the parties of tentative hearing date and filing deadlines (Leave granted) | |
| 2016-11-16 |
Appeal hearing scheduled, 2017-03-29 Judgment rendered |
|
| 2016-11-14 |
Order by, the Chief Justice, CJ, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT: Given that counsel for the respondents has filed a notice of withdrawal of counsel and that the respondents have informed the Court that they will not be represented by counsel in this appeal, Léon H. Moubayed is appointed as amicus curiae to assist the Court by filing a factum of no more than 40 pages and a book of authorities within eight (8) weeks after the service of the appellant’s record in accordance with the time limit provided for in Rule 36(1) of the Rules of the Supreme Court of Canada, and by making oral submissions at the hearing of the appeal. The reasonable fees and disbursements of Léon H. Moubayed shall be paid, on consent, by the Attorney General of Quebec. Allowed |
|
| 2016-08-30 | Notice of appeal, Completed on: 2016-08-31, (Printed version filed on 2016-08-31) | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-08-08 | Correspondence (sent by the Court) to, respondents, Re: Questionnaire | |
| 2016-07-26 | Notice of withdrawal, of counsel for the respondents | Mariette Émond and Victor Foisy |
| 2016-07-04 | Copy of formal judgment sent to Registrar of the Court of Appeal and all parties | |
| 2016-07-04 | Judgment on leave sent to the parties | |
| 2016-06-30 |
Judgment of the Court on the application for leave to appeal, The application for leave to appeal from the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montréal), Number 500-09-024401-143, 2016 QCCA 161, dated February 2, 2016, is granted with costs in the cause. Granted, with costs in the cause |
|
| 2016-05-16 | All materials on application for leave submitted to the Judges, Cro Wa Côt | |
| 2016-04-22 | Certificate (on limitations to public access) | Mariette Émond and Victor Foisy |
| 2016-04-22 | Respondent's response on the application for leave to appeal, Completed on: 2016-04-22 | Mariette Émond and Victor Foisy |
| 2016-04-04 | Letter acknowledging receipt of a complete application for leave to appeal, File opened on 2016-04-04 | |
| 2016-04-04 | Notice of name | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-04-04 | Certificate (on limitations to public access) | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
| 2016-04-04 | Application for leave to appeal, (3 volumes), Completed on: 2016-04-04 | Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company |
Parties
Please note that in the case of closed files, the “Status” column reflects the status of the parties at the time of the proceedings. For more information about the proceedings and about the dates when the file was open, please consult the docket of the case in question.
Main parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company | Appellant | Active |
v.
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Mariette Émond and Victor Foisy | Respondent | Active |
| Foisy, Sabrina | Respondent | Active |
Other parties
| Name | Role | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Moubayed, Léon H. | Amicus curiae | Active |
Counsel
Party: Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company
Counsel
200, rue des Commandeurs
Lévis, Quebec
G6V 6R2
Telephone: (418) 838-7800
FAX: (418) 833-5356
Email: mariaisabel.garcia@dsf.ca
Party: Mariette Émond and Victor Foisy
This party is not represented by counsel.
Party: Foisy, Sabrina
This party is not represented by counsel.
Party: Moubayed, Léon H.
This party is not represented by counsel.
Summary
Keywords
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Summary
Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.
Insurance – Whether indictable offence that originates in hybrid offence falls within first paragraph of art. 2402 C.C.Q. – Whether accidental death in question occurred while deceased was participating in indictable offence – Civil Code of Québec, CQLR c. C-1991, art. 2402.
On July 7, 2009, the applicant issued an accident insurance contract in the name of the late Sébastien Foisy, which provided, inter alia, for the payment of $56,000 if he died as a result of an accident. The succession of the late Sébastien Foisy, namely his legal heirs, was the beneficiary of that payment. The day after the insurance contract was issued, the late Sébastien Foisy was intercepted while riding his motorcycle alone at a speed exceeding the speed limit. This was followed by a high speed police chase over about 20 kilometres in residential and rural areas, which ultimately ended with the death of the late Sébastien Foisy, the respondents’ son or brother, as the case may be. During the chase, the police officer lost control of his vehicle in the same place where the late Sébastien Foisy had himself already lost control of his motorcycle. The police car left the road and struck the late Sébastien Foisy, who was then cared for by paramedics, who took him to the hospital, where he died less than an hour later.
The accident insurance contract contained an exclusion clause stating that there was no entitlement to payment under the contract [TRANSLATION] “if the accident occurs while the insured is participating in any indictable offence or any act related thereto”. The applicant relied on that clause to support its refusal to pay the indemnity to the succession of the late Sébastien Foisy.
Lower court rulings
Court of Quebec
2014 QCCQ 2565, 760-22-007775-128
Action allowed
Court of Appeal of Quebec (Montréal)
2016 QCCA 161, 500-09-024401-143
Appeal dismissed
Memorandums of argument on application for leave to appeal
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Factums on appeal
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