Morse|Shannon LLP is proud to announce that Jerome Morse and Michael Shannon have once again been recognized in the 2021 Edition of Best Lawyers in Canada. Mr. Morse in the practice areas of Medical Negligence, Personal Injury Litigation and Product Liability Law and Mr. Shannon in the practice area of Personal Injury Litigation. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based upon an extensive and rigorous peer-review evaluation by top lawyers. For the last decade, Best Lawyers has been regarded – by both the profession and the public- as the most credible definitive guide to legal excellence in Canada.
Morse|Shannon LLP is proud to announce that Jerome Morse and Michael Shannon have once again been recognized in the 2020 Edition of Best Lawyers in Canada. Mr. Morse in the practice areas of Medical Negligence, Personal Injury Litigation and Product Liability Law and Mr. Shannon in the practice area of Personal Injury Litigation. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based upon an extensive and rigorous peer-review evaluation by top lawyers. For the last decade, Best Lawyers has been regarded – by both the profession and the public- as the most credible definitive guide to legal excellence in Canada.

We are also pleased to announce that Jerome Morse has been included as a Lexpert-ranked lawyer to be included in the upcoming Lexpert/ROB Litigation Special Edition. This publication will appear in the November 30, 2019 issue of The Globe and Mail’s Report.


Belanger v City of Sudbury
On September 27, 2016, Judgment was granted against the City of Sudbury in favour of the Belanger family for $12 million for damages and $1.4 million in legal costs (payable in addition to supplementary accident benefits of $2.4 million).

In January 2014, Jerome Morse was retained by the Belanger family's law firm in Sudbury, to conduct the trial for the Plaintiffs which commenced on November 18, 2014, was interrupted, resumed and concluded on April 22, 2015.

On November 17, 2015, the trial judge, Sr. Regional Justice R.D. Gordon, delivered Reasons for Judgment that found the City of Sudbury to be 100% liable for the Plaintiffs' damages owing to its failure to keep the roadway properly maintained and free of snow and ice. Lisa Belanger, who was operating her vehicle, crossed the centre line due to the hazardous condition of the road and sustained catastrophic injuries after colliding with a school bus.

The City of Sudbury, appealed the Judgment.

In May 2017, the Plaintiffs successfully responded to the City of Sudbury's appeal of the award for damages and costs, which, with post-judgment interest, entitled the Plaintiffs to $13.925 million in damages, interest and costs as a result of the successful trial and appeal.

The City of Sudbury's appeal was argued on May 10, 2017 before Justices Cronk, Pepall and Chief Justice Strathy. Justice Cronk released the Court's reasons on May 25, 2017, finding that the trial judge reasonably found that the City of Sudbury failed to meet its own maintenance and road standards, which resulted in snow packed and slippery road conditions, resulting in the motor vehicle accident. Paul Pape and Shantona Chaudhry of Pape Barristers argued this successful aspect of the appeal on behalf of the Plaintiffs. Justice Cronk further agreed with Justice Gordon attributing 100% of the fault for the accident to the City of Sudbury. Jerome Morse argued this successful aspect of the appeal such that there was no finding of contributory negligence on the part of Lisa Belanger.

On June 28, 2017, the Court of Appeal fixed the Plaintiffs' costs of the appeal at $95,000.00.

As a result, the Plaintiffs' total recovery from the City of Sudbury and the Plaintiffs' accident benefits insurer is $16.33 million.


Congratulations to Michael Shannon for his 2017 Distinguished™ Rating from Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™. This impressive honour is only bestowed upon the finest attorneys by their peers. Michael is consistently recommended as one of the leading practitioners in the area of personal injury law.


On September 27, 2016, Judgment was issued in favour of the Belanger family arising out of a motor vehicle accident where $15.8 million is to be paid for damages and costs.

On November 22, 2000, Lisa Belanger lost control of her motor vehicle due to accumulated snow and ice on an overpass in Sudbury, crossed the centre line, struck a school bus head-on in the oncoming lane, and sustained catastrophic injury. No fault could be attributed to the operator of the school bus so a trial was necessary to determine whether Sudbury was at fault due to it's failure to properly maintain the roadway to keep it clear of the accumulated snow and ice and whether Lisa was also at fault for losing control of her vehicle.

In January 2014, Jerome Morse was retained by the Plaintiffs' law firm in Sudbury, to conduct the trial for the Plaintiffs which commenced on November 18, 2014, was interrupted but concluded on April 22, 2015.

On November 17, 2015, the trial judge, Sr. Regional Justice R.D. Gordon, delivered Reasons for Judgment that found Sudbury 100% liable for the agreed-upon damages amount of $12 million payable by Sudbury which, in combination with Lisa Belanger's SABS payments, results in total damages for her motor vehicle accident of approximately $14.4 million. On May 16, 2016, Justice Gordon ordered Sudbury to pay the Plaintiffs costs of approximately $1.4 million. Sudbury has appealed the judgment. The appeal is to be heard in early 2017.