BC Supreme Court judge rejects ministry application in RCMP collision case

A British Columbia Supreme Court judge has rejected an application by the provincial ministry to amend its legal response in a civil case involving a 2019 collision between an RCMP vehicle and driver James Lawrence Strutt.

The incident occurred in May 2019 at an intersection in Vernon. The ministry, named as the defendant, sought to amend its plea nearly six years after the initial claim was filed, arguing that Strutt’s injuries should be classified as minor under the Insurance Vehicle Act. If granted, the case would have been transferred to the Civil Resolution Tribunal (CRT) for a determination on the severity of the injuries.

Strutt’s counsel argued that allowing the amendment would cause significant delays, noting that the CRT takes a median of 394 days to reach decisions. The court noted the lack of explanation as to why previous defense counsel had not sought this amendment earlier.