Potential Jurors Who Pay Automobile Insurance Premiums Can Serve On Civil Juries

On August 8, 2018, the Ontario Superior Court released a decision in Kapoor v. Kuzmanovski, 2018 ONSC 4770 ("Kapoor") dismissing a plaintiff's motion to challenge jurors for cause who paid automobile insurance premiums and to have the jury notice struck. This motion had the potential to significantly alter the procedure utilized for selecting juries in motor vehicle accident cases, as well as limiting eligible candidates from the jury pool. Prior to the motion being heard, the Court ordered that the Advocates' Society and the Ministry of the Attorney General of Ontario participate as interveners.

The Facts

The plaintiff's motion sought an order "excluding potential jurors who drive and pay for automobile insurance premiums or have automobile insurance premiums paid on their behalf from the jury pool" as a result of an alleged inherent conflict of interest. The plaintiff also sought to exclude from the jury selection process residents of Brampton, Ontario who pay for automobile insurance or have it paid for on their behalf. The plaintiff's main argument was that prospective jurors in civil motor vehicle accident cases who drive motor vehicles and possess insurance under the province's motor vehicle insurance legislation carry an inherent conflict of interest preventing them from impartiality. The plaintiff asserted that the jurors' financial obligation to pay the insurance premiums "constituted a personal interest adverse to that of Plaintiffs in motor vehicle accident cases."

The defendants argued that the right to a trial by jury is a substantive right and there existed no legal basis to limit the right to a jury trial as submitted by the plaintiff. The intervenors were generally aligned in their positions and with the defendant.

Intervenor Findings

The ministry submitted that "the only valid challenges for cause are those specifically enumerated in the Juries Act, which relate to juror eligibility, not partiality." As noted in the decision, the Juries Act includes two types of jury challenges in civil trials: (1) for want of eligibility (i.e. not meeting the criteria in the Juries Act), and (2) for ratepayers and officers/servants of municipal corporations, in situations where the municipal corporation is a party.

The ministry further submitted that jurors who possess an interest in the proceeding to be tried are not automatically ineligible to serve. Moreover, the ministry asserted that "an evidentiary basis sufficient to displace the...