Since 2010, Holness and Small Law Group has written over 1000 legal blog articles. We believe that staying informed and current with personal injury news and case developments is essential to providing proper legal services to our clients when advocating for their rights.
As a lawyer in British Columbia since 1995 I have helped in the settlement of the some the most difficult cases you can imagine with ICBC, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia. Here we provide information and instructions that will help steer an ICBC insurance claim in the right direction. Best Time to Sette with…
ICBC has prevented public disclosure of documents that would have revealed advice, guidance and recommendations received prior to unilaterally terminating numerous agreements with the automotive industry in 2011. The Court, in this ICBC private documents case(Insurance Corporation of British Columbia v. Automotive Retailers Association,2013 BCSC 2025), quashed an earlier order of the Provinces Freedom…
Suing an insurance company like ICBC means putting yourself at risk in a lawsuit and should only be done for good cause. There are 4 essential forms and documents you need before you sue the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC, for refusing to pay injury benefits after a car accident. Here’s a checklist: 1.…
Offers to settle and settlement discussions in a civil case cannot generally be used as evidence at trial and are considered without prejudice, even when dealing with ICBC. This rule was created to provide protection to litigants that try to resolve disputes and is referred to as settlement privilege. In this email settlement offer case (Mayer…
In this Personal Injury Settlement Divorce Claim case(2013 BCSC 1827) The wife tried to claim half of the husband’s settlement from ICBC as a family asset. The husband kept his settlement from ICBC separate and did not use it for any family purpose. He had actually placed the settlement money in a separate bank account and…
Personal Injury Lawyer Mr. Renn Holness explains the three first steps to reporting a car accident in British Columbia. Reporting a car accident to ICBC should be done within the first 30 days, learn more and report to an injury lawyer online.
In this double costs Fast Track personal injury case(Peacock v. Battel, 2013 BCSC 1902) the claimant made an offer to settle to settle her case for $125,000.00 but the defendant, insured by ICBC, refused making only a $41,000 offer. The court awarded the claimant $255,000 and found that ICBC should have accepted the claimants offer. This…
In a Dramatic turn-a-round, on April 30, 2014, the BC Court of Appeal has overturned this wrongly decided waiver of personal injury case (Niedermeyer v. Charlton,2014 BCCA 165). Therefore the following principles no longer apply, unless changed by the Supreme Court of Canada or by statute. As of Signing a release and waiver of liability…
This was an assessment of the costs following the settlement of personal injury litigation. The only issue was the $2,000.00 cost of an MRI of cervical and lumbar spine done privately.(Kumanan v. Achim,2013 BCSC 1867) The injury claimant was in a motor vehicle accident sustained soft tissue injuries. Despite two treating doctors recommending an MRI,…
The British Columbia Court of Appeal provided a rare existential perspective commenting on the value of human life this week in the right to die case of Carter v. Canada (Attorney General)2013 BCCA 435. For personal injury lawyers this reaffirms the dignity and respect for life that is the backbone of injury claim compensation. As the…