ICBC Internal Settlement Documents May have to be Disclosed

Although inconsistent with a recent case refusing disclosure of the ICBC settlement brief,  this case may open the way for claimants to obtain ICBC internal settlement documents for prior car accident claims( Easton v. Chen, 2015 BCSC 2288). However the current state of the law needs to be affirmed by the Supreme Court or Court of Appeal. In this…

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Settlement Privilege Attached to the Documents Prepared by Previous Lawyer

This was a court application to force a claimant to disclose the details of a prior auto insurance settlement (Gamble v. Brown,2015 BCSC 1873).This lawsuit arose out of a motor vehicle accident which occurred  in Surrey, British Columbia in which there was a claim for injuries and loss suffered by the plaintiff. The matter was set for a…

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First Settlement Proposal Remains Confidential in Second Car Accident Case

As a result of the car accident in question the claimant sustained injuries to her head, jaw, neck, shoulders, chest, back, left arm, left elbow, left wrist, left hand, left hip, left leg, and left heel. Importantly, the claimant had suffered an injury in a another almost identical motor vehicle accident just two years before the…

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Promoting Settlement with Mediation Agreements- Reading the Fineprint

The settlement of personal injury cases in Canada just got more complex. The Supreme Court of Canada has eked out a new place for mediation contracts, in our legal arsenal of settlement tools, that contain absolute confidentiality clauses preventing parties from proving the terms of a settlement (Union Carbide Canada Inc. v. Bombardier Inc., 2014 SCC 35).…

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