Legal

Service of a Statement of Claim Reference for Staff

What is a Statement of Claim (“Claim”)? It is a document prepared by the party initiating a lawsuit.

How claims work:

• A claim can be filed against Southern Health-Santé Sud (SH-SS) as a region and also against sites and staff members. Anyone listed on the claim will be called a Defendant.
• All named Defendants on the claim must be served.
• It can take up to 6 months to be served after claim is filed.
• Staff should not accept service of a claim on behalf of SH-SS or sites.
• Our lawyer for service will be accepting service of claims.
• If SH-SS does not respond in 20 days we are noted in default.
• Our lawyer will defend staff named in a claim.
• Staff who have retired and/or moved to another job are covered if they were employees at the time of the event; and so long as they assist with investigation and defence.
• All employees are insured through HIROC. The only way a staff member wouldn’t receive coverage under the HIROC policy is if they wouldn’t provide information for defence purposes or provide a signed statement.
• Any doctors listed on a Statement of Claim are not employees so not represented by our insurance and/or legal counsel.
• There is no coverage for staff involved in criminal or intentional acts eg. snooping or sexual assault.
• Staff can contact with our insurance adjuster directly to discuss the process after service of the Claim who will calm staff and ease their worries. Request contact information for the insurance adjuster from Quality, Planning & Performance Administrative Assistant.

NEW PROCESS:

If a process server attends regional sites and/or sites to serve a claim on behalf of SH-SS or a named site, staff are to say:

“I do not have the authority to accept service here.”

If a process server attends a site to serve a claim personally on a staff member then the staff member named in the claim must accept service of that claim.