By William E. McNally and Bottom Line Research and Communications

In 1980, the Supreme Court of Canada rendered two landmark decisions pertaining to the related matters of the duty of a physician to make disclosure to the patient and the requirement of informed consent of the patient to a surgical procedure.

In Hopp v. Lepp Chief Justice Laskin considered whether a patient who suffered permanent damages after the performance of a hemilaminectomy had given informed consent to the procedure. After suggesting that the patient had a right to decide what, if anything, should be done with his body, Laskin C.J. went on to hold that there was a duty of disclosure – that is, the surgeon or physician was bound by a duty to provide information to his or her patient.

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