pbrown@mollp.com
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While civil wrongful death suits may provide compensation to the families of victims, they do not always provide what many families cry out for: change aimed at preventing future deaths, Toronto critical injury lawyer Patrick Brown writes in Lawyers Weekly.
“To seek change, counsel may turn to the Coroners Act for assistance,” writes Brown. “The traditional focus for counsel under the act was on representing families at inquests where a jury is impanelled and evidence is presented during a formalized hearing. However, the majority of wrongful death inquests are discretionary and not always granted.”
In addition, since they do not focus on who is at fault, many personal injury counsel do not push for them and direct their efforts to the civil proceedings, he adds.
“In recent years, however, s. 18 death reviews under the act have gained prominence,” writes Brown. “Unlike an inquest, s. 18 provides the statutory authority to allow the coroner to conduct a broader, more detailed analysis of similar fatalities over a given period of time.”
A coroner can make recommendations
Following the review, the coroner can make recommendations to prevent similar types of death from occurring, the article says, noting the media attention given to this type of review tends to focus more on the recommendations for death prevention than the specific traumatic events leading to the death.
In 2012, Ontario’s Office of the Chief Coroner released the Cycling Death Review after taking a detailed look at 129 cycling deaths in the province from 2006 to 2010, culminating in 14 recommendations, writes Brown.
“At the present time, a provincial cycling strategy is underway that is considering the coroner’s recommendations,” the article says.
In addition to the No. 1 recommendation noting the need for “complete streets,” Brown says additional recommendations call for changes to the Highway Traffic Act, a three-foot passing rule, truck side guards, paved shoulders and education of drivers and cyclists alike.
