Watch our latest video with Ascend Legal 101 where we discuss ICBC’s new Enhanced Care coverage, the “no fault” car insurance in BC, and more. Listen to our chat to learn more about this topic as well as our professional opinions on the matter.
Our Video on ICBC Enhanced Care and “No Fault” Car Insurance in BC
HOM recently obtained a jury award of $331,000 in damages for a client following a motor vehicle accident (“MVA”), and then defended against ICBC’s attempt to reduce this award.
When a motorcycle attempts to pass a vehicle by travelling in the wrong lane of travel and is side swiped by a vehicle they are passing, who is at fault?
In this week’s personal injury post, we wish to highlight the fact that liability assessments are often complicated and nuanced decisions that require considering the facts of the case carefully. In Postic v Demarco, 2020 BCSC 1950, a 2020 decision of D. MacDonald J., the court found split liability between a driver of a vehicle travelling east who struck the plaintiff motorcyclist that was trying to pass on the left. In this case, the plaintiff was travelling down Stewart Street in Vancouver and arrived at a line of vehicles. He came to a stop in the left most lane. He leaned over the centre line, saw that it was clear, and proceeded to cross over the centre line and drive down the road. As he was driving the wrong way, he came upon the defendant’s vehicle.
In personal injury claims (e.g. car accidents, slip and falls, medical malpractice, or sexual assault) there are different categories of compensation that a plaintiff can seek. A common claim is for loss of income earning capacity (i.e. the reduced ability to earn income because of someone else’s negligence). In the case of Grant v Ditmarsia Holdings Ltd, 2020 BCSC 1705, Madam Justice Wilkinson was evaluating a case involving a person who had suffered almost no income loss between the date of injury (February 10, 2015) and the date of trial (July 27, 2020) but nevertheless claimed loss of income earning capacity into the future. Wilkinson J. summarized the issue as follows:
Traumatic brain injuries often change people’s lives. That is why brain injury claims often attract large monetary awards for loss of income and future care. However, not all brain injuries are similar. Their treatment and claim procedures depend on many factors. Read on to learn more, and contact us today to speak to one of our expert brain injury lawyers.
If you’ve heard the news recently you’ll know about the upcoming cap on payouts for settlements on ‘minor injury’ claims.
As this will affect thousands of motor vehicle accident (MVA) claims occurring after April 2019, we wanted to shed some light on what led to this decision by the current NDP government, and what you can do about it.