M. Steven Rastin

(705) 722-6393 [email protected]

Canada Disability Benefit should not be a windfall for insurers

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • The federal government’s Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) – intended to enhance the lives of Canadians by reducing disability-related poverty – is an excellent idea in theory but it requires safeguards to ensure it does not create an unintended and undeserved windfall for insurance companies, says Barrie-area litigator M. Steven Rastin.  “There is a direct […]

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Cost award like a ‘bomb going off in the world of LTD litigation’

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • A long-term disability (LTD) insurance case involving a woman wrongfully denied benefits even though she suffered from a serious brain bleed was recently awarded almost $3 million in damages, past benefits and court costs and could be a “game changer for disability litigation” says Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin.  In Baker v. Blue Cross, a jury ordered Blue Cross Life Insurance Company of

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LAT conflict of interest concerns need to be addressed

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • A disturbing narrative is circulating involving Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT) adjudicators who have allegedly rendered insurance-friendly decisions and then accepted offers of employment from insurance companies. In one case, the Ontario Trial Lawyers Association (OTLA) has alleged that an adjudicator rendered numerous decisions in favour of a specific insurer

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Cost awards shouldn’t be profit centres for insurers: Rastin

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • Insurance company defendants may be awarded costs, in certain circumstances, if an injured plaintiff loses their case at trial.   Losing in a civil trial is not as simple as it may appear, says Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin. Many plaintiffs are actually awarded significant damages by juries, but still end up “losing”

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Insurance claimants could benefit from SCC intervention

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin says he is hopeful the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) will agree to weigh in on a recent court of appeal decision that he believes could have a detrimental effect on insurance claimants if it is not reversed. In Varriano v. Allstate Insurance Company of Canada, the Ontario

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Facing the challenges of mass tort, class-action litigation in 2022

/ 2022 Year in Review, Class Action /

Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin, senior counsel at Rastin Gluckstein, spoke about the challenges of mass tort and class-action litigation during another eventful year. Rastin began the year by explaining that preparation is vital in getting a class-action lawsuit past the all-important certification stage, noting that failing to win certification can be the death knell of the claim.

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Court of appeal decision ‘a wake-up call and a warning’

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • Plaintiff lawyers negotiating settlements in complex actions involving multiple parties must pay heed to a recent Ontario Court of Appeal (OCA) ruling that has effectively made their task more difficult, says Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin.  Rastin, senior counsel at Rastin Gluckstein, says the decision in Crestwood Preparatory College Inc. v. Smith is

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Product recalls without robust follow-up may not be enough

/ Class Action /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • There is an assumption in our legal and regulatory systems that, in cases where a product is defective and potentially dangerous, the manufacturer’s recall notice may be sufficient to deem that public safety has been adequately safeguarded, says Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin.   In fact, he says in the recent decision of Coles v. FCA Canada

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Gluckstein Lawyers investigates link between NEC, baby formula

/ Class Action /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • The class-actions and mass torts team at Gluckstein Lawyers is investigating potential claims on behalf of premature infants suffering from serious long-term consequences after being diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), says senior counsel Steve Rastin. The litigation team, which includes Rastin, James Newland, Jordan Assrraf and Brian Moher, is looking into whether

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Still no closer to an answer in issue of proving legal causation

/ Personal Injury /

By Tony Poland, LegalMatters Staff • The challenge of proving legal causation is often misunderstood and a recent divisional court decision dealing with a catastrophic injury claim does little to clarify the issue, says Barrie-area litigator Steve Rastin. Rastin, senior counsel at Rastin Gluckstein, says the court made the correct decision in Thiruchelvam v. RBC

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