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BUSINESS INTERRUPTION CASE: IT DID NOT GO THE INSURERS WAY It’s here the moment that the insurance industry and consumers have been waiting for since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic the final ruling on the appeal of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)’s business interruption case in the UK. It’s a ruling that is likely to have major repercussions for the insurance industry internationally and it didn’t go insurers’ way. In its judgment, the Supreme Court chose to substantially allowing the FCA’s and the Hiscox Action Group (HAG)’s appeal and dismissed insurers’ appeals. #businessinterruption #covid

LEGAL ADVICE: INTER-PROVINCIAL TRAVEL BAN FEASIBLE? An emergency room doctor from Whistler, B.C., joined the call for inter-provincial restrictions this week after seeing a "worrying" number of patients from Ontario and Quebec who had travelled west over the holidays. Horgan also acknowledged that revelations about a half-dozen Canadian politicians who disobeyed restrictions and travelled during their time off this winter "led to a firestorm of frustration and anger" that he...lped reignite the ban debate. #interprovincialban Do you agree with an inter-provincial travel ban?

STAY AT HOME ORDER: LAW ENFORCEMENT PROWERS The Ontario government says its new stay-at-home order to curb the spread of #COVID-19 does not give law enforcement unfettered power to enter people’s properties, force them to explain why they are outside or stop them in their cars, as some #police forces reported being overwhelmed with worried calls from the public. The order, which came into effect on Thursday at 12:01 a.m. and lasts until at least Feb. 11, does not require workers to provide proof that they are travelling to or from their workplace, the #government said. Instead, it’s intended to limit the public’s contacts and includes a list of exemptions, including essential trips for food, medicine, exercise or work.

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REAL ESTATE: TORONTO HOME PRICES HIT RECORDS https://financialpost.com//toronto-housing-market-ends-202 Toronto home prices reached a record in 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic driving demand for larger homes and low rates making it easier for people to afford them. The average price for homes sold in Canada’s largest city last year hit $930,000, the highest on record and up 13.5 per cent from 2019. The pandemic has caused home prices to soar across the developed world, as... the low borrowing costs used to stimulate locked-down economies also increase property buyers’ budgets. A Canadian bank offered a mortgage rate of less than 1 per cent for the first time last year. #realestate See more

REAL ESTATE: HOUSING MARKET TO SOFTEN 2022 Canada’s housing market may be heading for a soft landing at the end of the year after what could be a record-breaking 2021, a new report by RBC Economics said. The report published Wednesday said supercharged demand driven in part by low rates, high household savings and improving consumer confidence will continue to push housing market activity in Canada to record highs. The increase is set to take place after a 2020 that was likely the strongest year ever for the market despite the COVID-19 pandemic stalling activity in the spring. #realestate

LEGISLATION: ACCIDENT OF LAW The federal government says it will soon introduce legislation to close "an accident of law" that allows Canadians who travelled abroad to claim up to $1,000 in sick pay while quarantining back home. Canadians have been been able to apply for the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB) if they're unable to work for at least half of their scheduled work week because they have tested positive for COVID-19 or are isolating due to the virus. #COVID19...travel What is your opinion on this?

INSURANCE: AUTO INSURANCE DISCOUNTS DURING PANDEMIC Most insurance companies have stopped offering COVID-19 relief but there’s a chance some could offer help again. Generally, there haven’t been big rate hikes since the pandemic hit. Instead, most companies froze or even slightly lowered maximum rates, If you’re not commuting to work anymore, you could save on your rates by lowering the annual kilometres allowed on your policy. You’ll have to call your insurance company to let them know. #insurance #driving

FACTS&TIDBITS: RETAILERS URGE ONTARIO GOVERNMENT TO RECONSIDER LOCKDOWN https://www.theglobeandmail.com//article-retailers-urge-o/ Ontario’s move to limit non-essential retailers in Toronto and Peel Region to just curbside pickup or delivery could kill off thousands of small stores that count on make-or-break Christmas sales to survive, retail-industry associations say.The Retail Council of Canada (RCC) and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) are pressin...g Ontario Premier Doug Ford to soften the blow for businesses as a large chunk of the Greater Toronto Area enters a COVID-19 lockdown just as holiday shopping season was supposed to begin.Missing out on sales in May was harmful, to miss out on Christmas is fatal, said Dan Kelly, head of the CFIB. source: GlobeandMail See more

LABOUR LAW: FORCING THE VACCINE ON EMPLOYEES For employers, a key question is whether companies can force workers to get inoculated in the coming year. It’s a complicated calculation for business owners and managers, fraught with human rights, moral and legal issues. Mandating vaccination for people who have health reasons for foregoing inoculation, or deeply-held religious or moral reasons is a clear-cut violation of human rights.Businesses will have to find a way to balance the goal of providing a safe workplace, for employees and clients alike, with an individual employee’s right to refuse vaccination. #labourlaw #employmentlaw #vaccine #COVID19

SUPREME COURT RULING: MENTAL DISABILITY In a decision released Friday, the top court upheld an Ontario Court of Appeal decision that found Ontario’s Christopher’s Law is discriminatory and violates the charter rights of people found not criminally responsible in sexual assault cases. The law draws discriminatory distinctions between people found guilty and people found not criminally responsible of sexual offences on the basis of mental disability, the court found. These discriminatory distinctions cannot be justified in a free and democratic society. The remedy granted by the Court of Appeal was appropriate, and its orders should be upheld. #supremecourt #mentalhealth

FACTS&TIDBITS: Canadian households and businesses sitting on $170 billion excess cash hoard Frugal Canadian households and businesses have accumulated a minimum of $170 billion in excess cash throughout COVID-19 and are currently sitting on the largest cash hoard in recorded history, according to CIBC. In the second quarter, labour income fell by over $100 billion, but that number was offset by government transfers, which grew by $225 billion and what’s described as other b...enefits pandemic emergency programs rising by $151 billion. Instead of spending that money, Canadians hoarded the extra cash, leading to the savings rate increasing from 3.6 per cent to 28.2 per cent as of June. Tal and Judge estimate that Canadian households, mostly those made up of mid-income and high-income Canadians, are sitting on $90 billion in excess cash, which they’ve dutifully pumped into their chequing and savings accounts. source: Financial Post Nov17 See more

INSURANCE: PANDEMIC DRIVING IS DOWN Now consumer advocates say insurers should give drivers another break, since driving habits haven’t returned to normal and insurers have continued to reap the benefits of fewer accident claims. People have been driving significantly less, some insurers have been reporting significant increases in profits from their auto insurance business, at least in part because of fewer auto crash claims during the pandemic #driving #insurance

DRIVING LAWS: Petition to toughen drunk driving laws nears 100,000 signatures As the number of signatures grew, so have the number of motor vehicle-related fatalities across Peel Region 38 to date, up from 23 all of last year. Since 2010, only two full years have recorded more motor vehicle-related fatalities: 41 in 2018 and 40 in 2016. Police confirmed that six of the deaths to date in 2020, including the Ciasullos and 19-year-old Jagrajan Brar, who was killed after his car was hit head-on in an Oct. 10 crash, were the result of alleged impaired driving. #impaireddriving #petition

PRIVACY LAWS: OVERHAUL TO CANADA'S PRIVACY LAWS As the number of high-profile online consumer security breaches continues to grow, the federal government is expected to introduce a bill soon to shake up Canada's privacy laws possibly as early as this week. It also promised to introduce new regulations for large digital companies to better protect Canadians' personal data and encourage more competition in the digital marketplace, and to appoint a new data commissioner to oversee those regulations. #privacylaws

CRIMINAL LAW: EXTREME INTOXICATION DEFENSE DANGEROUS FOR WOMEN Extreme intoxication is used as a defence by people who commit crimes of violence after becoming highly intoxicated. If successful, the defence results in full acquittal. An aggressor will not be held criminally responsible for acts of violence against another person.Due to a public outcry, the government quickly passed a law prohibiting the use of the defence for crimes of violence. Section 33(1) was added to the Criminal Code of Canada, which prevented the use of the defence for crimes like assault, sexual assault and robbery. It also included a preamble recognizing women and children are equally entitled to protection under the laws of the state. #sexualassault #criminallaw #intoxication

HAPPY NEW YEAR! MANY BLESSINGS AND ALL THE BEST FOR 2021! :)

REAL ESTATE: MORTGAGE RATES COULD BE HEADING HIGHER Five-year fixed mortgage rates could be set to increase as early as this week for the first time since COVID-19 led to a 100-basis-point decline, according to multiple Canadian brokers who say lenders have warned them of the potential hikes. Three Canadian brokers told the Financial Post that they’ve already been contacted by lenders about a hike. Should the yield on the Canadian five-year bond hold at its current level heading into the end of the week, brokers believe that a hike between 10 and 20 basis points will be rolled out. #realestate

PERSONAL INJURY: SOCCER HEAD INJURIES Using your noggin to do such feats isn’t without its risks. After all, imagine what would happen if you went around hitting things with your head like billiard balls, beer bottles, paint buckets, and Dwayne The Rock Johnson statues. Studies have found that between 4% and 22% of all injuries in soccer are head injuries. These include bruises and lacerations as well as concussions. In fact, a study published in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine found that men suffer 1.1 concussions for every 1,000 hours that they played soccer whereas women had an even higher rate, 2.6 concussions per 1,000 player hours. #soccer #headinjury #personalinjury

CRIMINAL LAW: DIGITAL INITIATIVE AND FILING OF CRIMINAL CHARGES The provincial government, working alongside the Ontario Court of Justice and the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, is introducing a digital initiative for filing criminal charges. The new eIntake platform seeks to accelerate and to simplify the filing and management of criminal charges by allowing police officers to digitally file such charges instead of appearing before a Justice of the Peace. With this change, police can spend more time preventing and investigating criminal activity and protecting and serving their communities and less time doing paperwork and travelling to and from courthouses, said the Province’s announcement. #criminallaw #digitalfiling

REAL ESTATE: THE RETHINK- OWNING A HOME Real estate had grown to represent about 15 per cent of gross domestic product, compared with about 11 per cent 2007, according to Statistics Canada data. Siddall then delivered another jolt: he called on legislators to resist the urge to respond with new policies that would make it easier for Canadians to purchase homes. #realestate

REAL ESTATE: HOME RENO'S VALUE AND COVID https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/as-covid-shifts-home-renos-into Financing a home renovation as the supply chain resumes is a tough call considering demand keeps driving up the cost of building materials and contractors are charging top dollar. In theory, the extra costs should be recouped through a higher price for the entire home when it is sold. The promise of rock-bottom interest rates for many years ahead also makes it an opportune ...time to finance any home renovation project through a home equity line of credit (HELOC). #homerenos See more

INSURANCE CLAIMS: SKYROCKETING INSURANCE- RESTAURANTS Ontario restaurants and bars are facing soaring insurance costs and possible closings as Canadian insurers begin to hike premiums and cancel policies during a time when most establishments are struggling to remain open during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Insurance brokers in Ontario have been told that some policies are being cancelled because of concerns around the legal risks if a patron at an establishment contracts COVID-19. As a result, insurance premiums have been raised as much as 300 per cent for some bars and restaurants that have tried to renew policies in recent months, while other establishments have been refused insurance entirely making it almost impossible for them to operate. #insurance

Canadian Court Ruling: CONJUGAL RELATIONSHIPS A gay man and a straight woman are able to form a conjugal relationship recognized by Canadian courts, according to a ground-breaking new ruling that expands the legal definition of what a loving couple can look like. The decision involved a gay refugee to Canada and a straight woman who met in university overseas, became close friends and had a baby together. However, when the man tried to sponsor the woman and their child to join him in Canada, their case was blocked by Canadian immigration officials who said their bond didn’t meet the definition of a conjugal relationship. #courtruling #conjugalrelationships

COURTHOUSE VISITS: REDUCING THE NEED FOR IN-PERSON PROCEEDINGS Ontario is investing in technology for its courts to deliver more services online and to conduct more remote proceedings.The province intends for these technological investments to reduce the need for in-person courthouse visits and to make accessing the justice system safer, easier, faster, more responsive and more affordable amid the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.Throughout the COVID-19 emergency and recovery, we have worked with our partners to move Ontario’s justice system forward by decades in a matter of months through game-changing modernization initiatives. #courthousevisits

FAMILY LAW: TEENS OF DIVORCED PARENTS A Canadian law firm says it has seen an increase in teenagers of divorced parents looking to switch households ahead of a possible second lockdown. Bach said one of the biggest issues when divorced parents allow a child to switch households is working out child support. When dealing with children under the age of 18, Bach explained that there's normally child support payments flowing from the non-custodial parent to the custodial parent each month. #familylaw #childsupport #custodialparent

REAL ESTATE: MORTGAGES STILL COME FROM THE BIG SIX The largest share of new mortgages in Canada is still with the big banks, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. In its recently released annual Residential Mortgage Industry Report, CMHC said that the largest banks originated approximately 67% of new mortgages across Canada last year. However, the Big Six banks’ market share fell from 75% of mortgages outstanding in 2018 to 72% in 2019. The banks’ average loan per borrower stood at $220,650, while the average delinquency rate was at 0.24%. #mortgages

REAL ESTATE: CMCH AND HOUSEHOLD DEBT Officials in Ottawa discussed forcing private mortgage insurers to tighten eligibility rules, but ultimately balked, leaving Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. to proceed on its own, the federal housing agency’s leader said. Most economists agree that aggressive monetary policy will be needed to recover from the COVID-19-induced recession, but some policy-makers, including Siddall, think regulators should pair lower-for-longer interest rates with tighter lending rules to limit potential credit problems down the road. #realestate

REAL ESTATE: HOUSE PRICES WILL FALL Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation President and CEO Evan Siddall is warning the domestic housing market isn’t out of the woods just yet. In an interview with BNN Bloomberg’s Amanda Lang broadcast Thursday, Siddall said that while the most bearish case for home prices doesn’t seem likely to come to pass, he still sees a price decline by just shy of 10 per cent due to the economic shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of people on income support, the number of people on mortgage deferral, means that at some point, probably early next year through the middle part of next year, there will probably be a negative adjustment in house prices. #realestate #houseprices

REAL ESTATE: OVER-VALUED HOMES Overvalued homes continue to be a feature of Canada’s largest cities during the second quarter as the pandemic bit into the number of houses entering the market, according to the country’s largest public mortgage provider. And other Canadian cities are also seeing home prices heat up. The level of overvaluation across the country is likely underestimated because the temporary surge in disposable income generated by federal income supplements was more than offset by job losses, CMHC Chief Economist Bob Dugan said on a conference call. #realestate

REAL ESTATE: CMHC-HOUSE PRICES WILL EVENTUALLY DROP https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/cmhc-stands-by-forecast-for-sha Canada’s federal housing agency is sticking to its pessimistic forecast for the future of the country’s housing market, citing tremendous risks from the COVID-19 pandemic. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. forecast in May that average prices would fall between 9 per cent and 18 per cent from pre-pandemic levels before beginning to recover in the first half of 20...21. #realestate See more

REAL ESTATE: HOUSING IMPORTANCE When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Ontario, the real estate market was witnessing climbing prices month-after-month due to continually increasing demand mixed with a chronic shortage of new housing supply.Then, seemingly overnight, as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, residential sales dropped by more than two-thirds and new listings all but dried up. Though the situation has changed immensely, the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) says the issues of supply shortages and affordability concerns are likely to remain. #realestate #housing

REAL ESTATE: HOME PRICES JUMP THE MOST IN THREE YEARS Canadian new home prices recorded their sharpest one-month gain in three years with higher demand and rising costs for building materials. The data are consistent with other indicators showing Canada’s housing market hitting new all-time highs in recent months as pent-up demand for homes combines with tight inventory levels and historically low interest rates. #realestate #lumberprices