This personal injury case the claimant was awarded a total of $404,282.20. However the defendants made a formal offer to settle before trial for $474,456.00 new money, plus advances of $15,669.40 for a total of $490,125.45, making it $101,475.74 higher than recovered.(Layes v. Stevens,2017 BCSC 2011)
The claimant was injured in the motor vehicle accident. It came down to the extent of these injuries. Besides soft tissue injuries and other physical injuries, the claimant asserted she suffered a mild traumatic brain injury , psychiatric and psychological injuries of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder as defined in the Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).
At the time the formal offer to settle was sent to the claimant it was apparent that the plaintiff’s doctors diagnosed the claimant as having a MTBI, PTSD and major depressive disorder.
After a review of the law the court concluded that the claimant,” should accept responsibility for the consequences of pursuing this litigation in face of the weakness of her medical experts’ opinions, as well as her own representations as to the loss of employment”. The judge took into consideration the claimants’s financial situation, particularly as it relates to her employment at the time of trial.
For ICBC offers to settle there are many options that are available to the court in awarding costs when an offer of settlement is made pursuant to Rule 9-1 of the Civil Rules. The court may allow costs and disbursements up to the time of the offer or within a reasonable period of time from the offer, but before trial, as well as awarding no costs after the delivery of the offer with both the plaintiff and defendant each bearing their own costs and disbursements after the delivery of the offer. The award of costs is not limited to these options.
Posted by Vancouver Personal Injury Lawyer Mr. Renn A. Holness, B.A. LL.B