Stieber Berlach
Avi Sharabi
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Avi Sharabi

Tel: 416.594.4681

With a practice focused on insurance coverage, Avi provides strategic, practical counsel to insurers facing complex claims, coverage disputes, and emerging risks.

Biography

AVI SHARABI is one of the co-chairs of the firm’s Insurance Coverage Practice Group and an experienced civil litigator whose practice focuses on insurance coverage, professional liability, directors and officers liability, and general tort liability.

Avi maintains an international insurance coverage practice, providing coverage and monitoring advice to both domestic and London Market insurers across a wide range of policies. He also represents insurers in coverage litigation and has been involved in precedent-setting cases, including matters concerning the allocation of defence costs in long-tail property damage claims and additional insured coverage involving self-insured retentions. Avi has appeared on behalf of insurers at all levels of court in Ontario, as well as arbitrations.

A significant part of Avi’s practice is devoted to defending professionals in liability claims. He regularly acts for insurance brokers, mortgage brokers, accountants, financial advisors, engineers, and various healthcare professionals facing allegations arising from their professional services.

Avi also frequently represents corporations, organizations, and boards under directors and officers liability policies. He acts for both for-profit and not-for-profit entities in disputes involving oppression claims, defamation, breach of privacy, and allegations of breach of duty.

In addition, Avi maintains a broad tort liability practice. He represents general contractors, construction managers, condominium managers, and equipment contractors in class actions, mass tort claims, and large-scale property loss and construction negligence matters. Avi also acts for municipalities, including public health bodies, as well as luxury hotels, retailers, cleaning companies and real estate investments trusts (REITs) in bodily injury litigation.

In his spare time, Avi enjoys the three B’s: barbecues, basketball, and beach vacations.

Representative Work

Reported Decisions

  • Acted for insurance brokerage in complex, precedent-setting certification approval and stay motions involving interplay between class actions and mass tort claims in the context of partial settlement agreements, McCartney v. CDSPI Advisory Services Inc., 2025 ONSC 4250, aff’d 2026 ONCA 578 (CanLII)
  • Successfully resolved a class action lawsuit on behalf of an apartment building owner and property manager in relation to a fire that displaced hundreds of residents in the building. Crevier v. Ronkay Management Inc., 2026 ONSC 2195 (CanLII)
  • Successfully obtained time-on-risk allocation against policyholder involving significant uninsured period. His Majesty the King in Right of Ontario v. Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Company of Canada et al., 2025 ONSC 5670 (CanLII)
  • Acted for insurance brokerage in complex certification and stay motions involving interplay between class actions and mass torts, McCartney v. CDSPI Advisory Services Inc., 2025 ONSC 4250 (CanLII)
  • Successfully represented self-insured applicant on coverage application concerning defence obligation and issues of equitable contribution. Live Nation v. Aviva, 2023 ONSC 2284, appeal allowed in part at 2024 ONCA 634 (CanLII)
  • Successfully argued for the dismissal of an oppression remedy application against a condominium corporation by a unit owner over a noise complaint. Kikites v. York Condominium Corporation No. 382, 2022 ONSC 4606, aff’d 2024 ONCA 34 (CanLII)
  • Successfully argued for the dismissal of an oppression remedy application against a government funded lender arising out of a failed brewery business venture. Ziegelmaier v. Fisher et al., 2023 ONSC 4191
  • Brown v. The Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC), 2023 ONSC 6254 (CanLII) – Successfully resisted a motion for leave to appeal a successful undertakings and refusals motion at first instance.
  • Successfully resisted the production of a client’s hard drives in an interlocutory production motion. Ceballos v. Aviva Insurance et al., 2021 ONSC 4695 (CanLII)
  • Successfully argued a partial summary judgment, resulting in the dismissal of all individually named defendants in a complex condominium dispute by a unit owner against the condominium corporation and all unit owners. 1229965 Ontario Inc. v. York Condominium Corp. No. 263, 2020 ONSC 1639 (CanLII)
  • Successfully argued appeal at Ontario Court of Appeal, overturning application decision, regarding the interpretation of a Sexual Abuse Exclusion in a commercial general liability policy. Southside Muay Thai Academy Corporation v. Aviva Insurance Company of Canada, 2020 ONCA 385
  • Successfully argued for time-on-risk allocation in coverage application amongst several concurrent insurers. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company v. AIG Insurance Company of Canada. et al., 2019 ONSC 6489 (CanLII)

Representative Matters

Insurance Coverage
  • Defending property insurers in complex climate-related litigation
  • Defending commercial general liability insurer against duty to defend application arising out of a long-tail sexual abuse claim
  • Acting as coverage and monitoring counsel to a sexual abuse class action
  • Defending equipment breakdown insurer in action involving complex causation issues
  • Acting for policyholder in coverage application against D&O insurer claiming misrepresentation
  • Coverage and monitoring counsel to London Market specialty insurers
  • Coverage and monitoring counsel to domestic property, commercial general liability, specialty and cyber insurers
  • Defending managing general agent and subscribing insurers of E&O policy in insurance coverage action arising out of large public works project
  • Defending commercial general liability insurer in coverage application involving long-tail property damage claim
  • Acting for policyholders with self-insured retentions pursuing additional insured coverage in bodily injury and property damage claims
Civil Litigation – Professional Liability
  • Defending insurance brokerage in precedent-setting mass tort and companion class action arising from the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Defending structural engineer in complex construction litigation arising out of concrete repair in a parking garage
  • Defending hospital and perfusionist in medical malpractice/wrongful death claim arising out of cardiac surgery
  • Defending paramedics in medical malpractice claim arising out of stroke diagnosis
  • Defending accountant against client claiming tax losses caused by negligent accounting advice
  • Defending financial advisor in malpractice claim arising out of retirement savings
Civil Litigation – Directors and Officers Liability
  • Defending start-up capital lender against oppression claim
  • Defending voluntary student association’s board of directors against defamation and negligence claims
  • Defending condominium corporation and its board of directors against defamation claim
  • Defending condominium corporation and its board of directors against oppression action arising out of noise complaints
Civil Litigation – General Tort Liability
  • Defending municipal public health body in complex, multi-party mass tort infectious disease claim
  • Defending an apartment building owner and property manager in a class action arising out of a fire
  • Defending equipment contractor in high-value construction litigation arising out of a hydroelectric generating station project
  • Defending condominium manager in property damage claim arising out of large scale water damage
  • Defending general contractor in construction negligence claim arising out of luxury home build
  • Defending luxury hotel in bodily injury claims
  • Defending global retailer in bodily injury claims
  • Defending cleaning company in bodily injury claims

Speaking Engagements

  • The Law of Vicarious Liability, Client Seminar, 2026
  • Extracontractual Claims Against Insurers / Insurance Contractors, Client Seminar, 2025
  • Insurance Coverage Review, Client Seminar, 2025
  • Additional Insureds Update, Client Seminars, 2024
  • Long-Tail Coverage and Defence, Client Seminar, 2024
  • Cyber Liability and Cyber Insurance Update, Stieber Berlach LLP Insurance Law Update Seminar, 2023
  • Class Actions and Professional Liability Update, Client Seminar, 2023
  • Contribution and Indemnity Between Insurers, Client Seminar 2023
  • Additional Insureds Update, Client Seminar, 2022
  • Contractual Liability Exclusion, Stieber Berlach LLP Insurance Law Update Seminar, 2022
  • CGL Coverage Concepts, Client Seminar, 2021
  • Double Duty: The equities of concurrent duties to defend, Stieber Berlach LLP Insurance Law Update Seminar, 2020
  • Insurance Issues in Technology Contracting, CanTech’s 2018 Technology Law Spring Forum, 2018
  • The 2017 Highlights in Cyber Insurance Explored, The Knowledge Group webcast, 2017
  • Insurance Coverage Issues, Client Seminar, 2016
  • Professional Liability Issues, Client Seminar, 2016
  • Defamation on the Internet, Speaker, Client Seminar, 2015

Publications

  • “Why timing isn’t everything when it comes to claims causation,”  Canadian Underwriter, 2026
  • “Are There Limits to GRC Coverage? The SCC says ‘Yes’,”  Stieber Berlach LLP Case Commentary, 2026
  • “Court of Appeal Rejects All Sums Approach to Long-Tail Claims,” Stieber Berlach LLP Case Commentary, 2024
  • “The Courts clarify a condominium corporation’s obligations when a unit owner complains about noise from another unit owner,” Stieber Berlach LLP Case Commentary, 2024
  • “Creating a One-Sided Narrative Could Lead to a Punitive Damages Award against an Insurer,” Stieber Berlach LLP Case Commentary, 2024
  • “Double Duty: The equities of concurrent duties to defend,” Stieber Berlach LLP Insurance Law Update Seminar, 2020
  • “Should MDS Inc. v. Factory Mutual Insurance Company (FM Global) Impact COVID-19 Business Interruption Claims?,” Stieber Berlach LLP Case Commentary, 2020
  • “Much Ado About Nothing: Three Reasons why the Brick v. Chubb Decision does not add much to the Law of Cyber Insurance,” Client Newsletter, 2018
  • “The Correct Approach to the Interpretation of Boilerplate Policy Wording in Canada,” Client Newsletter, 2016

 

Education

  • J.D., University of Toronto
  • B.Sc. (Hons) Psychology and Human Biology, University of Toronto
  • Admitted to the Ontario Bar, 2012