Direct Tel. (604) 643-3168
Email jlh@cwilson.com

Area of Practice

Commercial, Environmental and Insurance Litigation.

Representative Work

Business Litigation

Successfully defending a $300 million breach of fiduciary duty claim against a major educational institution, resulting in a dismissal of the claim and $1 million costs award in favour of the client.

Obtaining a dismissal at Trial with special costs on behalf of the Defendant in Equus Technologies Inc. v. Sage Automation Corporation and Colin Marsh, in which the Court found that a personal guarantee alleged by the Plaintiff and denied by the Defendant had not been given.

Obtaining a favourable settlement for the plaintiff on the first day of trial in a case involving the defendant's refusal to honour stock option agreements.

Handling numerous defamation actions including several arising out of newspaper publications, television broadcasts and anonymous postings on internet bulletin boards.

Handling international commercial arbitrations under the American Arbitration Association and British Columbia International Commercial Arbitration rules.

Acting for software developers in proceedings brought in British Columbia Supreme Court and under the Commercial Arbitration Act, arising out of alleged failures to deliver software products.

Regularly handling commercial disputes involving leases, service contracts and sale of goods agreements.

Obtaining security for costs against the corporate plaintiff in a dispute concerning the ownership of shares.

Successfully applying for leave to appeal an interlocutory "Mareva" injunction in a case where the Defendant had moved to another country, following which the case was quickly settled.

Participating as co-counsel in a highly publicized Human Rights Tribunal proceeding involving a well-known Vancouver newspaper columnist.

Additional Representative work: Insurance Environmental

Profile

Jonathan Hodes is a partner at Clark Wilson LLP. He is Co-Chair of the firm's Environmental Law Practice Group, and a member of its Insurance Litigation, Business Litigation, and United States Law Practice Groups. He is a member of the Bars of the Provinces of British Columbia and Alberta, and the State of Colorado, having been admitted to all three in 1996.

Jon obtained his LL.B from the University of Windsor Faculty of Law and his JD from the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law, both in 1995. He began his career with a prominent law firm in Edmonton, following which he moved to Vancouver. He has appeared in all levels of court in British Columbia, as well as the Alberta Provincial Court, Alberta Court of Queen's Bench, Nunavut Court of Justice, Federal Court Trial Division and Supreme Court of Canada.

His practice is in insurance, environmental and business litigation, including a wide variety of actions involving liability claims, environmental clean-up litigation, coverage disputes, construction deficiency claims, breach of contract and other business litigation matters.

In addition, Jon has written on insurance and environmental issues for various Clark Wilson publications, including the Insurance Group's Insurance Bulletin and the Manual for Out-of-Province Claims Examiners. He has also contributed to CLE's Annual Review of Law and Practice and Motor Vehicle Practice Manual, published articles in The Lawyers Weekly and Defence Research Institute's For the Defence magazine, and been quoted in Canadian Underwriter.

Jon has spoken on insurance and environmental issues for the Insurance Institutes of BC and Alberta, Canadian Defence Lawyers, Continuing Legal Education Society of BC, Insurance Brokers' Association of BC, the Pacific Business and Law Institute, the Canadian Institute, Infonex and various clients of Clark Wilson. He has also organized and presented seminars accredited by Washington State's Office of the Insurance Commissioner to assist U.S. claims examiners in handling insurance claims in British Columbia.

Jon is a Board Member of the Canadian Defence Lawyers, a national organization which represents the interests of defence counsel to the insurance industry, and is affiliated with the Defence Research Institute in the U.S.

Presentations

Health Care Costs Recovery Act, CLE, Vancouver, 2009

BC Health Care Recovery Act: Comments and Caution, PBLI, Vancouver, 2009

Warranties, Misrepresentations and Rescission of the Insurance Contract, CLE, Vancouver, 2009

Update on Environmental Coverage and Exclusions, Vancouver, 2009

BC Medical Benefits and Health Care Costs Recovery Legislation, Seattle, 2009

BC Claims Handling Update, Seattle, 2008

Managing Risk in Construction Contracts, Edmonton, 2007

Recent Developments in Insurance Law, Vancouver, 2007

Case Law Update: Work Product Exclusions, Calgary, 2007

Critical Issues in Insurance Litigation, Toronto, 2006

Homeowners Policies: Property and Casualty Claims and Coverage, Vancouver, 2005

What Happens When an Alberta Insured Driver is Involved in an Accident in British Columbia, Edmonton, 2004

Overlapping Coverage and Exclusions, Edmonton, 2004

Handling Insurance Claims in British Columbia, Canada, Seattle, 2004

Update on Environmental Coverage and Litigation, Toronto, 2003

Memberships & Associations

Member, Law Society of British Columbia (1996)

Member, Law Society of Alberta (1996)

Member, Colorado State Bar (1996)

Member, Canadian Bar Association

Board Member, Canadian Defence Lawyers

Member, Defence Research Institute

Volunteer as guest "judge" at the Law Society's Professional Legal Training Course