Can a plaintiff who takes a lethal dose of a prescription drug, later takes his own life, sue the tortfeasor who prescribed the drug?
Ontario, Canada
The following excerpt is from Pantaleo et al. v. Wood et al., 2015 ONSC 1850 (CanLII):
In their factum, the plaintiffs point out that there have been cases which allow for a claim based on suicide against tortfeasors and they rely on two of them. In Robson v. Ashworth [1985] OJ No. 545, the plaintiff sought damages against the physician who had prescribed Seconal to her husband who had committed suicide by taking a lethal dose of the drug with alcohol. The drug has been prescribed for his insomnia. Though the doctor was aware that the deceased drank to excess, and had marital, business and financial problems, he was not aware that the deceased took this medication in a manner that was not consistent with his instructions.
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