The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) has agreed to pay more than $95,000 to two parties involved in a civil suit over a 2021 bike accident in Lost Lake Park, according to court records.
Vancouver lawyer Gerald Cuttler filed a civil claim against the municipality in 2022 after he was allegedly injured the prior summer. The suit said Cuttler was riding his bike on Lost Lake Road on or about July 25, 2021 when he approached a crosswalk and collided with a thin, unmarked rope strung to a sandwich board and was thrown off his bike.
Among other injuries, the suit said Cuttler suffered a broken left clavicle that required surgery; stiffness and restriction of his left shoulder and arm; and bruised and painful ribs. He sought both general and special damages, as well as health-care and other costs.
In its initial response, the RMOW denied any negligence or breach of duty, arguing the roadway was “reasonably safe” and did not constitute a dangerous condition or unusual danger.
Things took a turn when the RMOW filed an application to be granted leave from the case and add a third party, Whistler resident Liz Barrett, as a defendant. As part of a service agreement, Barrett was contracted by the RMOW to work at the site where trails are closed every summer to allow for the migration of thousands of small Western toads. Barrett’s duties included informing the public of all closures and detour routes and supervising toad-moving activities.
In its application, the RMOW argued that Barrett “owed a duty of care to post reasonable warning signs of the Rope and Obstacle that was placed across Lost Lake Road.”
In a mutual release agreement filed this month, the RMOW agreed to pay Cuttler $90,095.91 and Barrett $5,032.85. A mutual release, a legal document used to settle disputes, is not an admission of liability.
