The Importance of Your Family Doctor in Your Personal Injury Claim


November 27, 2018

Anyone who has been injured knows that it can be an awful experience. In addition to coping with pain and suffering, you may be worried that your symptoms might not improve. Furthermore, your injuries impact those around you. It’s never easy for those close to you to see you suffer, and they may experience feelings of helplessness. It’s important to everyone involved that you do whatever you can to heal and feel better.

If you are injured, the best way to help yourself and, those you love, is to follow the advice of your doctors and other medical professionals. In fact, from a legal standpoint, taking reasonable positive steps to ease your own pain and suffering is an extremely important part of obtaining full compensation for your injury claim. Continue reading

Sources of Compensation available following a Motor Vehicle Accident


October 11, 2018

Property Damage

After the initial treatment of any injuries sustained, the first concern most people have following a collision is dealing with the damage done to their vehicle. This will involve obtaining funding for any necessary repairs or, if the vehicle is written off, receiving a lump sum payout for the value of the vehicle.

If you have collision coverage on your vehicle, your insurer will be able to assist you. If you are at fault for the accident, they will pay for your property damage, less your deductible. If another party is at fault, and that party has insurance, your insurer will usually pay for the damage to your vehicle less your deductible (although your insurer will likely waive the deductible if liability for the accident is not in dispute) and recover that amount from the at fault driver’s insurer. Continue reading

What to Do if You are Involved in a Motor Vehicle Collision


October 1, 2018

A minor motor vehicle collision can be a traumatic event. The following are some helpful tips about what to do if you are involved in a collision:

Information You Will Need

At the collision scene obtain all information related to the collision from the other party or parties involved in the collision including:

  • Name, address and phone number of all drivers (ask to see their driver’s licences);
  • Name, address and phone number of the owners of the vehicle(s) if different from the drivers;
  • The licence plate number and vehicle identification number of each of the vehicles, along with their make, model and colour;
  • The name of the insurance companies and policy numbers for each of the other vehicles involved.
Continue reading

Damages for Homemakers and Stay-At-Home Parents: What Can You Claim For?


September 27, 2018

When you are injured in an accident, you can claim for different categories of losses. These categories are called heads of damage. One of these heads of damage is called general damages (also known as non-pecuniary damages). General damages compensate you for intangible losses like pain and suffering. You may also be able to claim special damages (sometimes called pecuniary damages), which are intended to compensate you for actual monetary losses that you incurred due to your injuries. Examples of special damages include economic losses (like loss of earnings or wages) and medical expenses (e.g., physiotherapy bills from the time of the accident until the time of the trial). Continue reading

Structured Settlements: Are They Right for You?


September 4, 2018

Most of the time, when a plaintiff is injured and awarded damages by the courts, a lump sum payment will be ordered. Essentially, what this means is that the court will total all of the damage amounts from the various heads of damage that were awarded, such as general damages or cost of future care, and the total amount of money is ordered to be paid to the plaintiff all at once. However, on occasion the courts will order a structured settlement. A structured settlement is a settlement agreed to between the parties where the plaintiff receives the amount of their damages on a periodic, scheduled basis. Continue reading

Claims for Concussion Injuries in Sports: The Trickle-Down Effect


July 9, 2018

The University of Calgary’s Integrated Concussion Research Program has recently released exciting research that has led to the development of a tool that will allow doctors “to accurately and rapidly measure proteins and small molecules known to indicate an injury that is present in the brain.” This tool is set for clinical trials, with the goal that the device will be able to detect brain injuries hours after the trauma occurred.

While this research can potentially revolutionize treatment for those with brain injuries, I wanted to explain to those seeking compensation for concussion injuries that there has been a “trickle-down” effect. Continue reading