In Anderson v. Molon 2020 BCSC 1247, the injured claimant brought a claim for personal injury for sexual abuse. Claims were made against the priest in sexual battery who abused her and against the diocese in vicarious liability and negligence for failing to take steps to protect her from harm when it knew of the…
As discussed in previous articles, medical malpractice claims are legally complex and inherently risky due to the expert evidence required to prove negligence against doctor. The first essential component to a successful medical malpractice claim is proving that the doctor owed a duty to care to his or her patient. Once it has been proven…
In a previous blog post on assault injuries, a father who directed that his sons attack and assault a 14 year-old classmate with batons was found liable for his indirect role in orchestrating the assault. In Siegerist v. Tilton 2020 BCSC 1235, the trial judge awarded the injured claimant damages for the assault injuries. As…
As many British Columbians are aware, most ICBC claims settle without a trial. Settling with ICBC is advantageous to injured claimants in certain situations. With settlement, an injured claimant can control the amount of the ICBC payout by agreeing or refusing to agree to an ICBC settlement offer. In doing so, the injured claimant…
If you are injured in an accident, you have the right to sue the negligent (wrongful) party for compensation for your injuries and losses. Examples of losses that are commonly claimed in an ICBC settlements include income loss, future care costs and special damages (reimbursement of your out of pocket expenses). One type…
In a prior blog post, we discussed the current state of ICBC settlements in 2020. Specifically, we outlined ICBC’s settlement policy as encouraged by the NDP which refuses to provide reasonable settlements to injured claimants. When ICBC refuses to reasonably assess claims and to offer legitimate settlements, it unnecessarily forces cases to trial. This…
Sports are a large part of our society. Millions of Canadians have participated in and have been spectators in amateur sports and professional sports. Sport injuries to both participants and spectators are unfortunately common due to the inherent risks of the game. Participants are deemed to accept the inherent risks of a sport injury if…
Often, the most common types of personal injury claims involving ICBC accidents, slip and fall accidents and private property accidents will include damages for: pain and suffering lost income future care costs special damages (reimbursement of out of pocket expenses). Another type of claim that is available to injured claimants is for loss of…
A social host is a person who holds a private party where alcohol is served and consumed by guests. A social host is different from a commercial host which is a business establishment such as a restaurant or a bar that serves alcohol for profit. Accordingly, the legal responsibility differs between a social host and…
Injured claimants have a legal duty to mitigate their injuries and losses from motor vehicle accidents. What this means is that injured claimants have an obligation and responsibility to take reasonable steps to minimize their losses such as by following medical advice. If it is proven that an injured claimant failed to mitigate their injuries…