In this ICBC injury case the Judge had sympathy for the ICBC lawyer and the members of his law firm in having to deal with a claimant without a lawyer. The judge was of the view that if the claimant hired a lawyer to deal with the case, or even just seek some legal advice, the court and all…
In a dramatic admission of medical illiteracy the Court of Appeal conceded that absent expert medical opinion evidence, a judge is not qualified to say what is, or is not, an illness (Saadati v. Moorhead,2015 BCCA 393). The trial judge refused to accept the claimant had suffered a brain injury but found that he had…
If you have a personal injury case in which the Court has awarded more than the offer you made before trial, you may be entitled to double your legal costs. The relevant parts of The Supreme Court Rule 9-1(5) and (6) state: (5) in a proceeding in which an offer to settle has been made, the…
ICBC has lost this important injury insurance law appeal, the court concluding that the word “use” includes the grabbing of a the steering wheel by a passenger(Felix v. Insurance Corporation of British Columbia,2015 BCCA 394). This bold decision by Madam Justice Bennett brings insurance coverage to all British Columbia passengers that take control of a vehicle, when it…
A stunning win by this injured cyclist is unanimously upheld against a quick turning driver which caused him to hit a parked car. This personal injury case concerned determination of blame in a car accident involving a cyclist. The claimant suffered injury when bicycling southbound on Blanshard Street in Victoria, B.C. and a vehicle suddenly pulled out into traffic from a nearby…
In personal injury cases there are four different types of offers that can be made to ICBC and insurers: pre-litigation oral offers; pre-litigation written offers; post-litigation oral offers; and post-litigation written offers. We can break down written offers into informal and formal offers to settle. This article will briefly explain how an ICBC claimant can…
Seeking advice about the value of an ICBC claim? As a lawyer I am often asked whether there is list to go to find out how much a particular personal injury is worth. Essentially a list of body parts and corresponding compensation amounts for each area of the body. For example, $25,000 for whiplash to the…
In this minor damage car accident case ICBC denied the claim but the claimant sought a large award for personal injury damages. ICBC said that the claimant responded to ICBC’s denial of her claim by alleging injuries and losses that were not real or were not caused by the collision. The ICBC accident claim form she completed was not…
When I began practicing personal injury law over 20 years ago the legislation creating the Insurance Corporation of BC, ICBC, was much different. Back then ICBC did not control the motor vehicle licensing branch in the Province and did not work as an arm of government collecting fines for Translink. Today’s car insurance scheme in British…
The personal injury lawyer hired by this claimant was able to negotiate an offer to settle of $100,000 with ICBC in a car accident injury case. However, the claimant was not happy with this amount, fired the lawyer and went to court himself. The court awarded the claimant $50,000 (2015 BCSC 1504) and ordered the claimant to pay the lawyer his proper fees for…
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