B.C. woman awarded almost $400,000 after off-leash dog attack left her severely injured

A B.C. judge has ordered the owner of a dog that attacked a passing jogger to pay $420,000. Photo by Diane Crocker /Handout

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A B.C. judge has ordered the owner of a dog that attacked a passing jogger to pay $420,000.

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Kaarina Schrott, 46, a licensed practical nurse, was awarded more than $392,000 in damages. About half of that covers lost earnings because of her major injuries, according to a judgment in a lawsuit she filed in B.C. Supreme Court.

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The dog’s owner has also been ordered to pay her $19,000 in court costs and to reimburse the province for $9,000 in covered medical costs, which is standard for such lawsuits.

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Schrott’s claims went unchallenged because the dog’s owner, Jocelyn Gaetan Roger, didn’t file a response to the lawsuit and didn’t show up in court, according to the judgment.

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Schrott was unable to serve Roger with documents, despite sending them to a property he owned in Gold Bridge and to a Surrey mailing address linked to that property, it said. Registered mail sent to Roger was returned as undeliverable.

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“The defendant’s failure to respond means he is deemed to have admitted liability for the incident,” ruled Justice Karrie Anne Wolfe.

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Schrott was still required to show how Roger’s alleged negligence caused her injuries, she wrote.

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In December 2020, Schrott, then 41, was jogging on a foot path in Vernon when a large off-leash dog approached from a truck it was standing by and attacked her, “biting her elbow, shaking her and pulling her to the ground,” according to the judgment.

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Roger got out of the truck, pulled the dog off her and put it in the truck.

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In addition to an injured elbow, Schrott’s lower left leg was broken and the cartilage in her knee was torn, and she couldn’t put weight on the leg.

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Roger helped her to his truck and drove her to her car 10 metres away. She was able to drive home, but she had to crawl out of her car and call for help from her husband. He drove her to the hospital, where she had surgery two days later.

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She couldn’t walk unassisted for two months. Because of her knee injury and continuing pain, she could no longer work at the foot-care clinic she owned, as the job required her to crouch and bend, Wolfe wrote.

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She eventually sold the business and no longer works.

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The judge was satisfied the attack by Roger’s dog caused the injuries to her left knee, which required two surgeries and left her with permanent physical limitations.

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“Based on the evidence before me, I am satisfied Ms. Schrott is less capable of earning income and has lost the ability to take advantage of all the employment opportunities that had previously been open to her,” she wrote.

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She awarded $200,000 for lost earnings, the equivalent of three years’ salary for a licensed practical nurse.

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Before the attack, Schrott enjoyed jogging, skiing, camping and gardening, and was energetic, outgoing and involved in the lives of her three children, then 12, 13 and 20, the judge wrote.

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“The evidence indicates Ms. Schrott’s physical limitations continue to impact her relationships and lifestyle,” Wolfe wrote.

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She also awarded Schrott sums for pain and suffering, future medical costs and for special damages, for physiotherapy and things like a knee brace.

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