Judge hears final submissions in Taurus and First Nickel case

Final submissions have come to a close in a court case in Sudbury involving First Nickel and Taurus Drilling.

The mining companies are facing a total of 12 charges under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. It follows the deaths of two contract workers with Taurus in 2014. Marc Methe and Norm Bisaillon were killed after a fall of ground at Lockerby Mine, which was owned by First Nickel at the time.

Ministry lawyer Dave McCaskill started his submissions on Tuesday and finished them on Wednesday morning.

He said that by not being present, First Nickel has not proven they did their due diligence to ensure the mine was safe.

McCaskill added that Taurus should shoulder its share of the burden as there were reasonable steps the company could have taken.

On Tuesday, defence lawyer representing Taurus, John Illingworth, said the company did everything it reasonably could to ensure the safety of the mine. He added First Nickel carried most of the responsibility as owner of the site.

The judge has said he will try toproduce a verdict by Thursday.