Train Owner Faulted for $2.4 Million Railway Crossing Injury

The injury claimant suffered a spinal cord injury and a traumatic brain injury  when a train owned by the Canadian National Railway, CNR,  struck her car as she crossed the railway tracks on Smith Crescent close to Glover Road in Langley, BC. The judge found CNR failed to maintain adequate sightlines at the Crossing by allowing an overgrowth of…

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Spinal Cord Injury Alleged from Seat Belt- Particulars Ordered

The injury claimant was a nine year old passenger sitting on the driver side rear seat of a 2006 Nissan Pathfinder when it was struck by another vehicle. As a result, the claimant sustained a near complete spinal cord transection resulting in him becoming a ventilator-dependent quadriplegic. The allegation is that the spinal cord injury was caused…

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Future Care Injury Award Reduced for Public Funding

The amount awarded for cost of future care can be adjusted up or down to take into account the availability of other benefits. In this Court of Appeal decision the court reaffirms this principle as it relates to the likelihood of continued publicly funded home care from Alberta Health Services (AHS). The injury claimant was involved…

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$3 Million Award for Dirt Biker Injured by All-Terrain Vehicle

A claimant must prove three elements to win a personal injury case: (1) that the defendant owed him a duty of care, (2) that the defendant’s behaviour breached the standard of care, and (3) that the claimant suffered damage caused (in fact and law) by the defendant’s breach.  In this tragic case a dirt bike and All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) collided…

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$300,000 Personal Injury Settlement Offer Rejected- $250,000 repayment Ordered

This personal injury claimant suffered soft tissue injuries in a car accident which developed into pain disorder. The issue at trial was the assessment of damages, and the first jury awarded her $528,000.00. This amount was overturned on appeal creating a a new “Reliable Hearsay Test” in personal injury cases. The second jury awarded her only…

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Settlement of Personal Injury Claim- “Urgency” for MRI Costs New Test?

This was an assessment of the costs  following the settlement of personal injury litigation. The only issue was the $2,000.00 cost of an  MRI of cervical and lumbar spine done privately.(Kumanan v. Achim,2013 BCSC 1867) The injury claimant was in a motor vehicle accident  sustained soft tissue injuries.  Despite two treating doctors recommending an MRI,…

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Advocate for Car Accident Spinal Injury Claimants- the Complications

As a personal injury lawyer I have the  good fortune of having a Neurosurgeon as a father. Head of Neurosurgery for over a dozen years Dr. R.O. Holness explains in this exclusive video the complications from spinal cord injury due to motor vehicle accidents. People with significant spinal cord injuries definitely have a shortened life span. It may not…

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Do I have to sign ICBC medical consent forms? Medical Authorization and Consent Forms Explained

Although NOT required to be signed to get Accident Benefits after a car accident the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC, will often ask the injury claimant to sign a medical consent form releasing medical information to ICBC. The standard ICBC authorization to provide medical information authorizes every medical practitioner to release to ICBC any and all records,…

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When to Hire a Lawyer for an ICBC Injury Claim

I have been hired as a personal injury lawyer for claimants dealing with ICBC at every different phase of a personal injury case: Immediately after the car accident, months after the injury, or even after the claimant has hired another lawyer. There are certainly better points in a case to have the benefit of legal…

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Spinal Cord Injury Car Accident Claimants Alerted to Name Change

The  British Columbia Paraplegic Association has changed it’s name and is now officially called Spinal Cord Injury BC (SCI BC).  SCI BC  helps people with spinal cord injury and their families by providing information and community support after car accident injuries or other traumas resulting in spinal cord injury and related disability. SCI BC was originally…

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