Steve Vorbrodt
Steve has significant experience in the area of insurance defence. He has spent his career defending the interests of insurers and insureds in a wide variety of matters including:
- professional liability claims against accountants, financial planners, health care and other professionals;
- personal injury and property damage claims (including fire loss);
- complex construction disputes involving engineers and engineering firms;
- directors and officers liability (including civil fraud and conspiracy claims);
- coverage disputes against insurers (including bad faith claims); and
- product liability claims involving manufacturers and distributors.
Steve has appeared before all levels of court in British Columbia as well as various administrative tribunals including the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British Columbia, the Insurance Institute of British Columbia, the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal and the Human Rights Tribunal.
Steve is recognized as a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation Canada and is peer-recognized by Best Lawyers in the area of insurance law.
Significant Reported Decisions
- Successfully defended appeal of judgment against insured (Hamman v. ICBC, 2020, BCCA, 170).
- Obtained 50% reduction in Plaintiff’s judgment to account for contributory negligence (Yang v. Duralia, 2020 BCSC 806).
- Obtained judgment against the Defendant who was found incapable of operating a motor vehicle due to the influence of alcohol (ICBC v. Hamman, 2017 BCSC 1831).
- Obtained judgment including punitive damages against two Defendants found liable for fraud and conspiracy to present a false witness in respect of a motor vehicle accident (ICBC v. Panag, 2013 BCSC 238).
- Obtained judgment plus punitive damages and special costs on a summary trial application in respect of a fraudulent theft claim (ICBC v. Kooner, 2011 BCSC).
- Obtained judgment including punitive damages in a claim based on civil conspiracy relating to material misrepresentations in an application for insurance (ICBC v. Thaci and Haliti, 2010 BCPC).
- Successfully defended claims for a declaration of insurance coverage on the basis of willfully false statements (Gotsutsov v. ICBC, 2009 BCPC 154 and Prasad v. ICBC, 2008 BCSC 1855).
- Obtained dismissal of personal injury claims on summary trial application in products liability case against a Fortune 500 company (Arellano v. Wong, 2015 BCSC 1705).
- Successfully defended application by plaintiff to add new causes of action in a professional negligence action (Ewert v. Marshall, 2007 BCSC 1042).
- Obtained dismissal of discrimination claim against a professional from the Human Rights Tribunal (Gallagher v. Henry, 2006 BCHRT 318 and correction).
- Obtained dismissal of actions involving claims of professional negligence (Swityk v. Priest, 2006 BCPC 518 and 2006 BCPC 519 and Leung v. Godley, 2006 BCPC 436).
- Worked in conjunction with senior counsel in obtaining judgment for investment losses against a financial advisor and an investment firm (Hawkenson v. Rogers, 2005 BCSC 318).
- Obtained favorable damage awards in personal injury actions against corporate defendant (Hansen v. Overwaitea Foods, 2003 BCPC 466 and Schoenke v. Overwaitea Foods, 2003 BCPC 465).
Publications
- Who Do You Represent: Vicarious Liability And Agency Issues In The Insurance Context, IBABC HyperArticle, BC Broker Magazine (April 2017)
- Faulty Workmanship or Resulting Damage: Ledcor v. Northbridge, IBABC HyperArticle, co-authored with Brendan Ward, BC Broker Magazine (December 2016)
- The Fine Art of Limiting Liability, IBABC HyperArticle, BC Broker Magazine (August 2016)
- When Directors May Be Liable For Mispresentations Made by Other Directors, co-authored with Peter Mennie, Letter of the Law (Fall 2016)
- Ledcor Construction: Supreme Court of Canada Clarifies Meaning of “Faulty Workmanship” and “Resultant Damage” to Expand Coverage in a Builder’s Risk Policy, Letter of the Law (Fall 2016)
- Objecting to Expert Evidence Based on Novel Science, Letter of the Law (Spring 2015)
- Commercial Litigation for Junior Lawyers and Legal Support Staff, co-chair and contributing author (CLE, 2012)
- Auto Insurance Clause Narrowed, Letter of the Law (Summer 2009)
- Recent Criminal and Quasi-Criminal Developments in Securities Litigation, co-authored with Rod Anderson (CLE, 2005)
- Barbarians Looking for the Gate, co-authored with Mark Tweedy, Pacific Law Institute, (2004)
- Author of a variety of published articles and commentaries regarding various insurance issues.
Presentations & Teaching
- Speaker, “Dealing with Ungovernable Registrants“, Seminar, RegPro2018 – Professional Regulation & Discipline, 2018
- Speaker, “D&O Liability & Coverage Issues for BC Brokers“, Seminar, IBABC, 2018
- Speaker, “Insurance Parties at Odds – Cases, Coverages and Opportunities“, 69th Annual Conference and Trade Show, Insurance Brokers Association of British Columbia, Whistler, British Columbia, June 2017
- Speaker, “Oops … I did it again – Liability Issues for Insurance Brokers“, Webinar, IBABC, 2017 & 2018
- Speaker, “Beyond CGL – Coverage Issues for BC Brokers“, Webinar, IBABC, 2016
- Speaker, “Anatomy of Investment Advisors’ Litigation“, Seminar, SU, 2009
- Speaker, “Vicarious Liability and Agency: An Overview“, Seminar, SU, 2008
- Speaker, “Litigation, Arbitration, Mediation: Choosing the Right Approach to Dispute Resolution in Canada“, Canadian-German Lawyers’ Association, Montreal, 2008
Professional Affiliations & Memberships
- Called to the British Columbia bar, 2004
- British Columbia Bar Association (Insurance Law and Product Liability subsections)
- Canadian Bar Association
- Law Society of British Columbia
Education
- Bachelor of Laws (LLB), University of British Columbia, 2003
- Bachelor of Arts (Honours), University of Western Ontario, 1993
