Jonathan Hodes is a lawyer and mediator with over 25 years of experience practicing law in British Columbia. He provides practical and cost-effective advice to insurers, brokers and other clients located in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. He holds Canadian and U.S. law degrees, and a large part of his experience includes assisting foreign insurers involved in inter-jurisdictional and cross-border claims. He has appeared in the courts of British Columbia, Alberta, the Nunavut and Yukon Territories, and the Supreme Court of Canada. He is a Past President of Canadian Defence Lawyers and an active member of DRI, as well as an elected member of the International Association of Defense Counsel and Association of Defense Trial Attorneys.
His practice includes defending claims brought under all types of insurance policies, including product liability, general liability, E&O, D&O, environmental liability and other specialty risks, regularly acting as coverage counsel under first- and third-party insurance policies, and providing assistance in drafting policy wordings. He has appeared in the BC Supreme Court, the BC Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada on coverage related issues, and has provided opinion evidence in the Superior Court of Washington State.
In addition, Jonathan is passionate about dispute resolution. He has completed Pepperdine University’s prestigious “Mediating the Litigated Case” program, and offers his services as a mediator in civil disputes. After nearly three decades of practice, he has earned a reputation for being reasonable and practical, with a proven ability to understand all sides of a dispute and to obtain sensible and cost-effective results, even in the most difficult cases. These skills are essential in mediation, where he applies them in assisting others to resolve their disputes without the cost, stress and uncertainty of trial. His mediation practice includes all types of insurance claims, including both liability and coverage matters, as well as uninsured claims, employment disputes and general litigation matters. He has been retained to mediate cases in BC, Alberta and Ontario, and is available to mediate in any jurisdiction, either virtually or in person.
Finally, he has written frequently on insurance issues and has contributed to various continuing legal education and insurance industry publications, and is a regular speaker on insurance related issues in Canada and abroad, including seminars accredited by the Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner to assist U.S. claims professionals dealing with claims in British Columbia.
