What are the steps of lawsuit?
The Supreme Court Civil Rules came into effect in British Columbia on July 1, 2010. The following paragraphs set out a summary of the main steps in a personal injury lawsuit under these Rules. It is important to note that not all lawsuits proceed in the same fashion. This article is designed to provide a general overview and does not address all situations. 1. Information Gathering – the first step in any lawsuit is to gather the relevant information from documents, the accident site, witnesses, doctors, caregivers, family, friends, co-workers and any other relevant sources of information....
read moreHow do disability benefits effect my ICBC claim?
If a person injured in a motor vehicle accident has access to a short-term or long-term disability plan because of the injuries suffered in the motor vehicle accident this is, generally speaking, a significant advantage. The advantage is that in most situations ICBC cannot deduct the disability benefits paid when considering settlement on the injury claim. In other words, if the net wage loss is $10,000 and the insured is paid $5,000 in disability benefits, ICBC does not pay $5,000, they pay $10,000. ICBC is not allowed to deduct disability benefits in situations where the insured pays all...
read moreInsurer’s failure to “follow up” may attract punitive damages.
On May 4, 2010, the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal held in Kings Mutual Insurance Co. v. Ackermann, that by not following up on all the evidence relevant to the claim, withholding critical information from the adjuster engaged to investigate the claim and allowing the adjuster to present the results of the investigation in a partisan, biased and un-objective manner, the insurer’s actions were such that an award of punitive damages was rationally required to punish the insurer’s conduct. The insureds were insured for damage to their dairy barn for the peril of a “windstorm”, among other...
read moreCan an LTD claim be resolved without trial?
Although many disputed Long Term Disability claims lead to lawsuits, most claims settle before trial. There are a number of approaches a disability lawyer can pursue to resolve a long term disability claim without a trial: 1. Reinstatement – this is the simplest way to resolve a long term disability claim. The insurer will pay a lump sum to bring the disability benefit up to date (i.e. payment of arrears), and then restart payments under the disability policy. This type of resolution will often occur when the insured is young and the prognosis for a return to work is uncertain. In this...
read more$25,000 damages awarded for mental distress.
On September 28, 2009, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice released its decision in McQueen v. Echelon General Insurance Co., [2009] O.J. No. 3965. The Court made a substantial award of mental distress damages against the insurer, Echelon, for denial of benefits in the amount of $25,000.00. BACKGROUND This case arose from a claim for statutory accident benefits and damages for breach of the insurer’s duty to act in good faith. The plaintiff sustained injuries in a rollover motor vehicle accident. At the time of the accident, she was unemployed and received benefits under the Ontario...
read more
