Case Law

Driving related decisions by the courts.

Parking Lot Pedestrian Collision

BC Courts Coat of ArmsThis is the story of Lenord Russell, who exited a bakery in a mall and walked forward into a parking stall at the same time that Kenneth Parks drove into it to park his vehicle. A collision occurred in which Mr. Russell suffered injury to his knee and foot. The case before the court was to decide who was liable for the collision and discusses first that the mall parking lot is a highway and then goes on to examine the duties that Mr. Russell and Mr. Parks had to each other as pedestrian and driver.

Hit and Run Pedestrian Fatality

BC Courts Coat of Arms imageThis hit and run incident involves Mr. Antonio Alves, a prohibited driver, who was driving his truck on Renfrew Street at East 22nd Avenue in Vancouver. He pled guilty to a charge under the Criminal Code and asked the court to serve his sentence in the community under a conditional sentence order.

CASE LAW - R v Prasad

BC Courts Coat of ArmsIn this case, Avinash Prasad has pled guilty to driving without due care and attention after having been charged with dangerous driving causing death. This follows from a collision on March 28, 2009 near the intersection of 64th Avenue and 176th Street in Surrey.

CASE LAW - Taylor v Depew

BC Courts Coat of ArmsCan you spare $206,333.05? This is the amount that the defendant, Matthew Depew, has been required to pay Sean Taylor for damages suffered in an off road collision. Mr. Taylor was riding a motorcycle in poor repair and Mr. Depew was driving a dune buggy on a single lane dirt forest road serving a forest service camp site near Campbell River.

CASE LAW - R v Dickson

BC Courts Coat of ArmsThis Supreme Court case from 2003 is useful to illustrate two topics: lane splitting by motorcyclists is illegal in BC and traffic court justices may prohibit drivers based on a bad driving record and have the prohibition upheld by the higher courts.

Misrepresenting the Principal Driver

BC Courts Coat of Arms imageICBC requires vehicle owners to declare who the principal driver of the vehicle will be during the purchase of an insurance policy. The driving record of the principal driver (75%) and the highest risk listed driver (25%) determine the cost of the policy. A deliberate misrepresentation of who will be driving could result in a claim being denied.

CASE LAW - R v Rhone

BC Courts Coat of ArmsKelly Rae Rhone was charged for operating a motor vehicle without proper insurance while driving on the Trans Canada Highway at Mill Bay, B.C. Ms. Rhone disputed the traffic ticket on the basis that keeping the insurance current was her husband's job and that she did not know the insurance was expired.

CASE LAW - R v Rei

BC Courts Coat of ArmsIs it a Motor Assisted Cycle (MAC) or a Limited Speed Motorcycle (LSM)? In the case of R v Rei it all comes down to whether there are pedals installed so that the driver may physically propel the device or not.

CASE LAW - Sivia v British Columbia (Superintendent of Motor Vehicles)

BC Courts Coat of ArmsThe reasons for judgment of Mr. Justice Sigurdson (in chambers) continues from the case where he found that British Columbia's Immediate Roadside Prohibition (IRP) where a driver provided a fail breath sample was contrary to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms because it did not provide for sufficient grounds for review of a prohibition.