Eric Dolden

Eric has been practicing insurance law for 34 years and named as one of Canada's top commercial insurance lawyers by Lexpert magazine. Eric is a founding partner in the firm which is now ranked as one of the Top 5 Insurance Boutique law firms in Canada by Canadian Lawyer magazine.

While focused on a timely and cost effective resolution of any dispute Eric's trial experience is varied and embraces the full spectrum of cases that insurers are required to defend. In recent years Eric has been lead defence counsel on cases as diverse as a 104 day catastrophic brain injury case (MacEachern v. Rennie and Canadian National Transport, 2010 BCSC 625), to a novel case concerning the legal relationship between a liability insurer and an insurance broker that undertakes underwriting functions (Scottish & York Insurance Co. Limited v. Metrix Professional Brokers Inc., (2008), 64 C.C.L.I. (4th) 242 (B.C.L.R.) to complex issues of proximity and causation (Dyke v. British Columbia Amateur Softball Association, (2008), 76 B.C.L.R (4th) 278 (C.A.)).

Early in his career Eric was involved in a leadership capacity in the Canadian Bar Association having served as the Chair of the National Civil Litigation Section of the Canadian Bar Association.

Coverage work, including his role as national and monitoring counsel for various specialized insurance programs, has resulted in Eric being the insurer's counsel of choice on many high profile and well known coverage cases decided in various jurisdictions across Canada.

• the Supreme Court of Canada's decision concerning the "duty to defend" obligation in the context of a sexual abuse claim: Non-Marine Underwriters, Lloyd's of London v. Scalera, [2000] 1 S.C.R. 555
• the Supreme Court of Canada's decision as to whether the existence of insurance may be disclosed to a jury: Hamstra (Guardian ad litem of ) v. British Columbia Rugby Union, [1997] 1 S.C.R. 1092
• the Supreme Court of Canada's examination of whether an "All Risk" property insurance policy is a policy of "Fire Insurance" for the purpose of the Insurance Act: Churchland v. Gore Mutual Insurance Co., [2003] 1 S.C.R. 445
• the British Columbia Court of Appeal's decision on the ambit of coverage for an insured's current and past undisclosed partnerships and joint venture activities in the context of a liability policy: Kingsway General Insurance Co. v. Lougheed Enterprises Ltd., (2004), 32 B.C.L.R. (4th) 56 (C.A.)
• the British Columbia Court of Appeal's decision as to whether psychological harm amounts to bodily injury for the purpose of a D & O exclusion : Wellington Guarantee v. Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, [1996] 9 W.W.R. 373; leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada refused, [1996] S.C.C.A. No. 322
• the British Columbia Court of Appeal's decision as to the method of allocation between the Directors and Officers and their uninsured company: Coronation Insurance Co. v. Clearly Canadian Beverage Corp. (1999), 168 D.L.R. (4th) 366 (B.C.C.A.)
• the British Columbia Court of Appeal's decision on the extent to which coverage for "Stock" at "Temporary Locations" arises in the context of a commercial property policy: Wingtat Game Bird Packers (1993) Ltd. v. Aviva Insurance Company of Canada (2009), 76 C.C.L.I. (4th) 161
• the Ontario Court of Appeal's decision as to whether an underwriter's willingness to waive an answer to a particular question in an application for insurance has the effect of "reading out" any related exclusion: Lloyds Syndicate 1221 (Millennium Syndicate) v. Coventree Inc., 2012 ONCA 341
• the British Columbia Supreme Court's decision on what constitutes a "claim" on a "claims made and reported" policy: Bakshi v. American Home Assurance Co., (2000), 84 B.C.L.R. (3d) 153
• the British Columbia Supreme Court's decision on the extent to which a general liability insurer can resist a settlement entered into between a claimant and its insured if there is evidence of collusion or unreasonableness: Litchfield Holdings & Management Corp. v. Kingsway General Insurance Co., (2002), 44 C.C.L.I. (3d) 238
• the Ontario Supreme Court's decision as to whether defects in building construction constitute an "accident" or "property damage" for the purpose of a general liability policy: Russel Metals Inc. v. Ball Construction Inc. (2007), 55 C.C.L.I. (4th) 241
• the British Columbia Supreme Court's decision concerning the application of the "absolute pollution" exclusion in a general liability policy in response to environmentally regulated contaminants: Dave's K&K Sandblasting (1998) Ltd. v. Aviva Insurance Co. of Canada, [2007] 51 C.C.L.I. (4th) 229

Eric has written extensively in the field of insurance law and has either authored or co-authored the following articles:

Directors and Officers Liability Insurance - Substantive and Coverage:

• Entity Coverage For Securities Claims Under a D & O Policy: Have We Come Full Circle? (2007), 25 C.J.I.L. 93 [Part 1], (2008), 26 C.J.I.L. 1 [Part 2];
• Directors' and Officers' Liability in British Columbia: Some Emerging Trends (2003);
• Emerging Trends in Canadian Directors/Officers and Employment Practice Liability: Substantive and Coverage - Co-Authors: Brock S. Beazley and Laura A. Wright [2002] 20 Can. J. Insurance L. 29- 44; and
• Handling "Cross-Border" D & O Claims Involving Canada and the United States - Co-Author: Susan Rutherford (1999) 17 Can. J. Insurance L. 45-67.

Employment Practice Liability - Substantive and Coverage:

• Employment Practices Liability and Employment Practices Liability Insurance Coverage In Canada (Part 1) - Co-Author: Susan Rutherford (1999) 17 Can. J. Insurance L. 1-15; and
• Employment Practices Liability and Employment Practices Liability Insurance Coverage In Canada (Part 2) - Co-Author: Susan Rutherford (1999) 17 Can. J. Insurance L. 20-26.

General Liability Insurance Coverage Issues:

• An Overview of Primary and Excess Coverage Issues for Claims Examiners(2008);
• Recent Developments in the Law Relating to Changes Material to the Risk(2007);
• Does A Commercial General Liability Policy Afford Coverage For A "Named Insured" Or An "Additional Insured" Involved In Any Past Or Current Partnership Or Joint Venture Activities? (2005);
• Mould: First Party Property and Third Party Liability Issues Facing Canadian Insurers (2003);
• Interpreting Common Exclusions in Property Policies (1994);
• All Risk and Builders' All Risk Policies - Emerging Trends (1991);
• The Innkeepers' Civil Liability for Intoxicated Patrons: Inside and Outside the Bar (1991) 2 Can. Ins. L. Rev. 1-9,;
• The Comprehensive General Liability Policy: Responding to Modern Business Risks (1990) 8 Can. J. Insurance L. 44-76; (1991) 2 Can. Ins. L. Rev. 11-79;
• Contracts to Bar Subrogation and to Avoid Legal Liability (1989) 7 Can. J. Insurance L. 90-96;
• The Insurer's Obligation to Indemnify a Named Insured for Loss Caused by a Co-Insured or a Unnamed Insured;
• Defence of Civil Sexual Assault Damages Claims: An Insurer's Perspective - Co-Author: Kathleen Duffield;
• Partnerships, Limited Partnerships, and Joint Ventures: Managing the Risk - Co-Author: Suzanne Duff;
• The Application of the General Liability Policy Exclusions in the Construction Setting - Co-Author: Lisa Ridgeway; and
• Substantive and Coverage Issues Inherent to the Defence of Professionals in Leaky Condo Litigation - Co-Author: Lisa Ridgway.

Property Insurance - Coverage:

• Subrogated Proceedings: Diminution in Value or Replacement Cost (1994), 5 Can. Ins. L. Rev. 67-74;
• The Practical Implications of the Replacement Cost Endorsement (1994), 4 Can. Insurance L. Rev. 277-87;
• Practical and Substantive Aspects of Subrogation (1993), 4 Can. Ins. L. Rev. 121-194;
• The Broad Form Property Policy Responds to Environmental Losses (1992);
• Insuring Conflicts on the Construction Site (1991) 9 Can. J. Insurance L. 94-96; (1991) 59 Assurances 377-402, 533-548; (1992) 60 Assurances 129-146, 273-276; (1992) 3 Can. Ins. L. Rev 33-98;
• All Risk and Builders' Risk Policies: Emerging Trends (1991) 9 Can. J. Insurance L. 20-40; (1991) 2 Can Ins. L. Rev. 341-384;
• Condominium Insurance in Ontario - Co-Author: Keith Edwards;
• The Strata Property Act: New Underwriting and Claims' Challenges for the Insurance Industry in B.C. - Co-Author: Renee T.E. Goult; and
• Insurance for Condominiums and Housing Co-Operatives.

Procedural Issues:

• New Alberta and British Columbia Insurance Acts (2008);
• A Practical Guide to Joint and Several Liability (2001);
• Waiver of Privilege: The Triumph of Candour Over Confidentiality (1990) 36 C.P.C. (2d) 56-86; (1989) 47 Advocate 535-551; and
• The Contemporary Canadian Application of the Anti-Suit Injunction to Restrain Foreign Legal Proceedings.

Eric's dominant practice areas include:

Professional liability defence, coverage and monitoring:

• The defence of a wide range of professionals from architects/engineers to medical service providers to land surveyors and accountants
• Creating and modifying E & O policy wordings for underwriters
• Acting as monitoring and coverage counsel for E & O programs in Canada
• Coverage work on "claims made and reported" E & O policies

Directors and officers liability and coverage:

• Extensive coverage work on both reimbursement and "duty to defend" D & O policies
• Defence work on for profit and non-profit D & O forms that provide entity coverage
• Adapted policies for use in Canada and developed manuscript endorsements for use in Canada

Employment practice liability and coverage:

• National monitoring and coverage counsel on a wide range of EPL insurance programs in Canada
• Developed "made in Canada" EPL forms
• Defended entities and management on "duty to defend" EPL forms for a wide range of EPL violations
• Maintain Canada wide 1-800 call service for EPL insurers and their insureds

Cyber liability and coverage:

• Modified Cyber policy forms for use in Canada
• Act as national monitoring and coverage counsel on varying programs
• Developed "response team" for cyber losses

Fiduciary liability and coverage:

• Acted as defence counsel on covered pension plan disputes
• Extensive coverage work on fiduciary liability policies
• Modified policy forms for use in Canada

General liability policies and coverage:

• Defended a wide range of insureds on general liability policies
• Litigated key coverage cases on "duty to defend" policies
• Provided advisory services to insurers modifying their general liability policies
• Acted for insurers undertaking policy buyouts on mass tort claims

Property policies:

• Coverage work for disputed property claims
• Extensive experience handling subrogated claims
• Undertaken numerous policy revisions in response to client requests
• Defended a wide range of property losses where fraud is an element