Renn A. Holness is a gifted lawyer and author to over 1000 legal blog articles. Married father of two daughters, son of a neurosurgeon and founder of Holness and Small Law Group

Making an ICBC Statement- Why How and When to Sign

Personal injury lawyers in Vancouver  give notice of accidents and report motor vehicle crashes to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC on behalf of clients. However, whether you have a lawyer or not, a statement following an accident does not have to be signed, but as set out in the legislation you will have…

Offer to Settle Upheld Against Injured Bus Passenger

The claimant was injured when he fell while riding a bus.  We reviewed the  trial decision, Injury on Bus Fault of Driver and Elderly Passenger. The Court assessed the claimant’s total compensation at two thirds of $35,100, which is $23,376.66. This article is a review of the claimant’s  application to recover two thirds of the costs of the personal injury…

Settlement Agreement Applies to Only Tainted Blood Recipients

A  personal injury class action lawsuit was settled by agreement regarding British Columbia residents who were infected with the Hepatitis C virus by transfusion of blood from the Canadian blood supply before January 1, 1986 and from July 2, 1990 to September 28, 1998, and their family members and estates. The settlement agreement was approved by…

ICBC Position on Costs Provokes Court Comment

After settlement of a personal injury case with ICBC  the last thing an injury claimant expects is another fight over the costs of the case. Well, currently the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC, seems to be welcoming settlement with an iron fist by fighting costs after settlement.  In the personal injury case of Gray v. Kohnert,2014…

Pain and Suffering Claims for Loss of Online Anonymity

Anonymity is a feature of much Internet activity and is the foundation of a privacy interest that engages constitutional protection against things like unreasonable search (R. v. Spencer, 2014 SCC 43 ). However, claims for pain and suffering following a car accident require ICBC and other injury claimants to disclose the details of their loss, therefore, some…

Physicians to Testify in ICBC Claims Must Understand Duty to Court

A family doctor or specialist involved an in ICBC or other personal injury claim is often much less prepared for court than many personal injury clients expect. There are many factors to consider when finding a physician including experience, location, local resources, and the like. However, an understanding of their duty to the Court will…

ICBC Offer to Settle of $450,000 Reasonable for Injury Claim

This car accident injury claimant was offered $450,000 to settle his settle her personal injury claim against ICBC and its insured(Brewster v. Li,2014 BCSC 463). When the offer was refused the case proceeded to a Supreme Court trial and after 9 days she was awarded $418,500, over $30,000 lower than the ICBC Offer. The Judge…

Injured Police Officer Entitled to Disregard Rules of the Road

When you are privileged you do not have to follow the rules of the road. This unanimous and successful appeal confirms that there is little room to find a  police officer negligent for a car accident which results from the officer responding to a vehicle travelling at such an excessive speed (Maddex v. Sigouin, 2014 BCCA…