''Arnold v Teno'',
978
Year 978 ( CMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* Battle of Pankaleia: Rebel forces under General Bardas Skleros are defeated ...
2 SCR 287 is a leading
tort
A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...
case from the
Supreme Court of Canada
The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; french: Cour suprême du Canada, CSC) is the Supreme court, highest court in the Court system of Canada, judicial system of Canada. It comprises List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Canada, nine justices, wh ...
. This decision was part of a trilogy of
personal injury
Personal injury is a legal term for an injury to the body, mind or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. In common law jurisdictions the term is most commonly used to refer to a type of tort lawsuit in which the person bringing the suit (t ...
cases including ''Andrews v Grand & Toy Alberta Ltd'' (1978) and ''Thornton v Prince George School Board'' (1978).
Teno v Arnold (1974)
On July 1, 1969, four-year-old Diane Teno and her six-year-old brother were crossing the street to get some ice cream from the
ice cream truck
An ice cream van (British) or ice cream truck (North American) is a commercial vehicle that serves as a mobile retail outlet for ice cream, usually during the spring and summer. Ice cream vans are often seen parked at public events, or near ...
parked on the other side when she was struck by a car driven by Brian Arnold. Teno was rendered severely
brain damage
Neurotrauma, brain damage or brain injury (BI) is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells. Brain injuries occur due to a wide range of internal and external factors. In general, brain damage refers to significant, undiscriminating t ...
d and in 1974, sued Arnold for damages.
At trial Teno was successful and was awarded damages.
Arnold v Teno (1978)
In 1978, Arnold appealed the amount awarded. The issue before the Court was whether the amount of award for damages was correct. The Court dismissed the appeal and upheld the original damage award. Justice Spence, writing for the majority, observed that the purpose of the award in these circumstances is to ensure that Teno is properly cared for the rest of her life. The sum of $7,500 per year was a "equitable" amount proposed by the Court.
Spence further qualified his decision by acknowledging the fear of overly generous awards for tortious acts stating that "the very real and serious social burden of these exorbitant awards has been illustrated graphically in the United States in cases concerning medical malpractice."
Impact
Both the initial 1974 lawsuit and the 1978 appeal are frequently cited in Canadian case law.
In
Kuipers v Gordon Riley Transport for example,
Samuel Sereth Lieberman stated "In Teno v. Arnold, supra, the Ontario Court of Appeal disagreed with Chief Justice McGillivray's view that the figures to be used in assessing damages for pain suffering and loss of amenities were arbitrary or conventional. That Court, however, accepted the principle that awards for similar injuries should be comparable."
See also
*
List of Supreme Court of Canada cases (Laskin Court)
This is a chronological list of notable cases decided by the Supreme Court of Canada from the appointment of Bora Laskin in 1973 as Chief Justice to his death in office in 1984. Laskin was the first Chief Justice to hear cases under the Charter ...
References
External links
*
Canadian tort case law
Supreme Court of Canada cases
1978 in Canadian case law
Ice cream vans
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