May 8th, 2012
When the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia decides to deny a personal injury claim after a car accident, often the only recourse is to file a lawsuit. Depending on the level of court, there are rules that control the court proceeding and claimant lawyer’s best options are usually assisted by the use of the Rules of Court.
In this post I will outline three Supreme Court rules that personal injury claimants and their lawyers can use to put their best foot forward.
first, getting the insurance policy of the at fault driver. Rule 7-1 (3) allows a claimant in a car accident to find out the policy limits on the other drivers insurance policy. As the rule states,
(3) A party must include in the party’s list of documents any insurance policy under which an insurer may be liable
(a) to satisfy the whole or any part of a judgment granted in the action, or
(b) to indemnify or reimburse any party for any money paid by that party in satisfaction of the whole or any part of such a judgment.
Second, getting documents from ICBC . Rule 7-1(1) requires the ICBC lawyer to list and provide documents that are directly relevant. as the rules state,
(1) Unless all parties of record consent or the court otherwise orders, each party of record to an action must, within 35 days after the end of the pleading period,
(a) prepare a list of documents in Form 22 that lists
(i) all documents that are or have been in the party’s possession or control and that could, if available, be used by any party of record at trial to prove or disprove a material fact, and
(ii) all other documents to which the party intends to refer at trial, and
(b) serve the list on all parties of record.
Third, Setting a date for the personal injury trial. Rule 12-1 outlines how to set a trial.
For my information about personal injury law in British Columbia take a look at my video about the purpose of personal injury law.
Best plan is to call a lawyer for a free legal consultation before you consider filing a lawsuit. Posted by personal injury lawyer Mr. Renn A. Holness, B.A., LL.B.
Tags: Accident Insurance Claim, British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Claim, ICBC, ICBC Injury claim, ICBC Lawyers, Insurance Claim, New Civil Court Rules
Posted in British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Lawyer, How Much Money Will I Get?, ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Insurance Claims, ICBC Lawyers, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Settlements, ICBC Truck Accident, Insurance Claim in British Columbia, Legal Advice, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Personal Injury Lawyers BC, Vancouver Personal Injury Lawyer | No Comments »
May 1st, 2012
Personal injury claimants in British Columbia should be aware of how the Courts deal with photos and videos kept at their Facebook accounts. As a personal injury lawyer in Vancouver since 1995 I have had to address privacy concerns for my personal injury clients in almost every case. With the evolution of social media, insurance companies know more than ever about injury claimant’s personal life and will often get photos and even videos of the claimant before they have a chance to change their privacy settings.
There are currently very few court cases dealing with Facebook in the context of personal injury claims in British Columbia. I did recently review a case in which the court refused to order disclosure of a claimants Facebook account information. However, in the case Fric v. Gershman, 2012 BCSC 614, the Court came to the opposite conclusion.
In the Fric case the litigant was claiming for damages resulting from injuries suffered in a motor vehicle accident in British Columbia. At the time of the accident, the claimant was a first year law student at the University of Victoria. The claimant’s vehicle was rear-ended which caused her injuries including chronic severe headaches, injury and pain to the upper back, and neck pain. After the accident, despite her injury, the claimant engaged in various activities including trips to Thailand, Fiji, Australia, Montana, Florida, California, Seattle, Portland, and Cuba.
The claimant had some 890 Facebook “friends” who did have access to the private content of the Facebook profile. The Facebook network was used by the claimant for both personal and professional interactions. Her Facebook profile stored 759 digital photographs and one video and the claimant did not disclose the precise nature or subject matter of the Facebook photographs or video. In addition, the claimant was in possession of approximately 12,000 photographs. It was not clear on the evidence whether those photographs were stored electronically or in an old-fashioned album.
Despite her injury the claimant continued to engage in sports and other physical activities since the accident, including hiking, scuba diving and wakeboarding albeit with some pain or discomfort.
After considering many case authorities, the Court concluded that some of the claimant’s photographs, including those held on the private Facebook profile, must be disclosed. In making the order Master Bouck stated, Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Car Accident Claim, Document Discovery, Facebook disclosure, ICBC, ICBC Injury claim, New Civil Court Rules
Posted in Back Pain, ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Truck Accident, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Neck Pain, Soft Tissue Injury, Whiplash Claims | No Comments »
March 14th, 2012
The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia in most car accident personal injury claims will try to get the claimant’s Medical Services Plan(MSP) printout. The BC Supreme Court has confirmed again that ICBC is not entitled to the MSP printout in a personal injury case without good reason (Kaladjian v. Jose, 2012 BCSC 357) . This case concerns court applications for production of documents from persons not parties (“PNP”) to the lawsuit ( Rule 7-1(18) ).
This personal injury decision concerned an appeal from a Master dismissing ICBC’s court application for a copy of the claimant’s Medical Service Plan Claim. The case arose from a car accident injury in BC in which The claimant sought compensation for pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life, as well as past and future earnings losses, loss of homemaking capacity and cost of future care and management fees.
ICBC submitted that in refusing to order the production of the MSP report the Master was wrong in his interpretation of Rule 7-1(18) of the Rules of Court.
Further ICBC, through the defendant, submitted that the decisions of Master Baker in Anderson v. Kauhane, February 22, 2011, Vancouver Registry No. M103201 [Kauhane], and of Master Bouck in Przybysz v. Crowe, 2011 BCSC 731 [Crowe], also refusing the production of MSP reports were wrongly decided.
The Supreme Court disagreed stating at paragraph 88, “In relation to those submissions I have, for all of the foregoing reasons, concluded that if only the defendant has pleaded a pre-existing condition, Master Baker’s and Master Bouck’s decisions in Kauhane and Crowe requiring evidence to support a defendant’s application for the production of MSP records were not wrongly decided.”
Posted by Personal injury Lawyer Mr. Renn A. Holness
Tags: Document Discovery, ICBC Statement, Low Velocity Impact Policy, MSP Printout, New Civil Court Rules, persons not parties, Prior Condition
Posted in ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Truck Accident, Insurance Claim in British Columbia, Motor Vehicle Accidents | No Comments »
March 7th, 2012
When getting free legal advice for a car accident, bike collision or pedestrian injury in social media the best lawyers will make it clear if and when you have to start paying legal fees. I have been a personal injury lawyer in British Columbia since 1995 and I have written often about how personal injury lawyers are paid in BC and How to hire a personal injury lawyer . Social media is no different in that legal advice should only be sought from a qualified lawyer. There are many opinions people will offer in good faith but if you are an injury claimant seeking help, unqualified advice can be confusing and misleading. Car accident injury claims will require much more than a social media site can offer.
The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC, has had more of a presence in social media due to the growing use of this medium of communication. What once was a care free environment has now become a feeding ground for appraisal and assessment of personal injury claimants. All of the top social media sites flourish on the exchange of personal information.
Bottom line is to talk to a real personal injury lawyer on the phone and go in for a free face-to-face legal consultation. Personal injury law changes almost every day as new cases are released, some overturned, and legislation is created, repealed and amended.
Posted by personal injury lawyer Mr. Renn A. Holness
Tags: Accident Insurance Claim, British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Claim, Car accident lawyer, Find Lawyers, Free Legal Advice, ICBC Injury claim, ICBC Lawyers, Insurance Claim, Legal advice, personal injury in social media
Posted in British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Lawyer, Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer, How Much Money Will I Get?, ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Insurance Claims, ICBC Lawyers, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Truck Accident, Injury Attorneys, Legal Advice, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Personal Injury Lawyers BC, Vancouver Personal Injury Lawyer | 1 Comment »
January 16th, 2012
The injury claimant, a pedestrian, was crossing Nelson Avenue in Burnaby, B.C. when her husband was hit by a car(Arsenovski v. Bodin, 2012 BCSC 35). The claimants husband subsequently reached a settlement with the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (“ICBC”) for compensation resulting from his injuries. The claimant, although not struck by the motor vehicle, claimed relief for the injuries suffered when she slipped on the road during the car accident.
The injury claim against ICBC remained ongoing for over 12 years by the time this application was heard.
The injury claimant initally sought no-fault medical and disability payments for her injuries from ICBC. She gave a statement through a translator about the car accident and her injuries to an ICBC adjuster. ICBC concluded, after further investigation, that the claimant provided a false statement to ICBC and initiated steps which led to her being charged with fraud. the claimant said the translator misinterpreted her statement. The Crown stayed the fraud charge on hearing the statement had come not directly from the claimant, but from an interpreter.
The injury claimant then sued ICBC for negligent and malicious prosecution and sued two of its employees. There was serious delay in bringing this case forward and the next step in the lawsuit against ICBC came 49 months later when the claimant’s lawyer served a notice of intention to proceed.
In refusing to dismiss the claim the Judge was conflicted, Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Car Accident Claim, Delay, ICBC, ICBC Injury claim, ICBC Medical Examination, ICBC Statement, Notice to Admit
Posted in ICBC Lawyers, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Settlements | No Comments »
January 4th, 2012
When a person suffers a serious spinal cord injury due to a car accident it may become impossible for the claimant to physically sign over authority to trusted family members. The victim of personal injury may still be legally competent but simply cannot physically take care of their day to day living needs or take the necessary steps in their ICBC personal injury claim. In British Columbia personal injury lawyers can help injury claimants and their families choose between Adult Guardianship and Legal Representation under the Representation Act.
A representation agreement can allow more than one person to assist. One representative can be appointed to help make decisions about routine management of financial affairs, and another can be appointed to obtain legal services and instruct a personal injury lawyer with respect to ICBC claims or other personal injury claims. There are strict limitations on who can be a representative and whether the representative can make decisions without unanimity. It’s best to hire a lawyer to draft the documents necessary for the representation agreement to be effective and valid.
The great thing about Representation Agreements is that they DO NOT deprive the injury claimant of the ability to make decisions about their ICBC personal injury case, if capable, despite a representative may have been authorized to make that same decision. The claimant maintains their legal right to make decisions and allows them to change the agreement whenever they choose.
The following activities are considered “routine management of financial affairs”: Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Brain Injury, British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Claim, Car accident lawyer, ICBC Injury claim, Representation Agreements, Spinal cord injury
Posted in #1 ICBC Injury Claims, #1 ICBC Personal Injury Lawyers, #1 Spinal Cord Injury Lawyer, Brain Injury, Head Injury, Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer, ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Truck Accident, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Personal Injury Lawyers BC, Spinal Cord Injury, Traumatic Brain Injury | No Comments »
December 21st, 2011
I have been a personal injury lawyer in Vancouver since 1995 and have witnessed the change in how the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, ICBC, pays for physiotherapy. I have written and dealt extensively with ICBC accident benefits and explain how ICBC accident benefits work for people that are injured in car accidents in British Columbia. Take some time to read my other articles on this subject.
Physiotherapy is considered a mandatory benefit that ICBC must pay if you are insured and the treatment is medically necessary. If you are a BC resident and your vehicle is registered in BC then you should be covered by these injury benefits after you have been injured in a car accident. The best way to ensure ICBC will pay for your physiotherapy is to get your doctor to confirm in writing the need for the treatment and the fact the the need arises for your car accident injuries.
ICBC is only required to pay for 12 physiothary treatments unless a medical practitioner confirms in writing that more treatments are needed. If ICBC does not think that the expense is reasonable and refuses to pay for the treatment the dispute has to be submitted to arbitration. In my personal injury practice we do very few if any arbitrations given their cost and delay.
Section 88(1) of the Insurance (Vehicle) Regulation, B.C. Reg. 447/83, provides that the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia shall pay an insureds benefits defined as “all reasonable expenses incurred by the insured as a result of the injury for necessary” services, therapy, or treatment as set out in the Regulation. Physical therapy is one of the included therapies. Payments under s. 88 are commonly referred to as “no-fault benefits”.
If ICBC does not start the arbitration process within a reasonable time after the denial, you can sue ICBC in Supreme Court to get a court order forcing ICBC to pay.
Most claimants call me frustrated that the ICBC adjuster refuses to pay for physiotherapy despite the family doctors recommendation. Section 88(1) does not confer on the ICBC adjuster the power or right to decide whether the claimant is legally entitled to accident benefits. Regardless of the adjuster’s view, it is open to you to sue ICBC for its failure to provide benefits. It is, however, open to ICBC, to challenge the claimant’s assertion that the treatment is necessary and reasonably priced. That position might be taken, for example, based on separate medical evidence obtained by ICBC (see Tiessen v. ICBC, 2008 BCSC 1822).
An ICBC adjuster is not qualified to express a medical opinion and if your benefits have been denied despite the opinion of your doctor you should contact a personal injury lawyer right away. Consider hiring a lawyer to prosecute your injury claim so you can focus on your recovery. Posted by Mr. Renn A. Holness
Tags: Accident Insurance Claim, Car Accident Claim, ICBC, ICBC benefits, ICBC Injury claim, Personal Injury, Whiplash Claims
Posted in Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer, ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Insurance Claims, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Truck Accident, Insurance Claim in British Columbia, Motor Vehicle Accidents | No Comments »
December 12th, 2011
Deadlines and limitations periods have always been a concern for injury claimant’s contacting my law firm. As a personal injury lawyer in British Columbia since 1995 I have dealt with hundreds of injury claims against the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) all of which involve multiple important deadlines and limitation periods.
The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia is authorized to provide various types of insurance which include Accident Injury Benefits, Third Party Liability Coverage, and Hit and Run Coverage. The deadlines for your injury claim depend on what type of ICBC claim you are making. Here are three of the top ICBC claims I deal with in my personal injury law practice:
1. The claim against the at fault driver- If you are able to prove that the car accident was the fault of another BC driver then they will usually be insured with ICBC. However if they are underinsured or uninsured a different ICBC claim may have to be made. The deadline for the claim against the at fault driver is typically two years from the date of the injury, with exceptions.
2. The ICBC no-fault claim- If your car is insured with ICBC you should be entitled to no-fault accident benefits if you’ve been injured on a road in BC. I have written extensively on the topic of ICBC accident benefits. The no-fault injury claims have complicated deadlines and you should consult a lawyer or file a written report with ICBC within 30 days of the car accident, unless there is no prejudice to ICBC. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Accident Insurance Claim, British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Claim, Car accident lawyer, Find Lawyers, Free Legal Advice, ICBC, ICBC Injury claim, ICBC Lawyers, Legal advice, Personal Injury, Personal Injury lawyer, Personal Injury Lawyers
Posted in British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Lawyer, Hiring a Personal Injury Lawyer, ICBC Bicycle Accidents, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Insurance Claims, ICBC Lawyers, ICBC Motorcycle Accident, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, ICBC Truck Accident, Injury Attorneys, Insurance Claim in British Columbia, Legal Advice, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Personal Injury Lawyers BC, Vancouver Personal Injury Lawyer | No Comments »
December 5th, 2011
The injury claimant sued for his losses after he was run down in a crosswalk and later injured again when his vehicle was rear-ended by a vehicle driven by one of the defendants to the lawsuit. The claimant applied for an order that the personal injury case be removed from Fast Track Litigation (Sandhu v. Roy, 2011 BCSC 1653), Rule 15-1 of the Supreme Court Civil Rules. The personal injury lawyer for the claimant sent a number of letters to the lawyer for the defendants stating that the case was not appropriate for the fast track designation. The lawyer for the injury claimant proposed a seven-day trial but, not satisfied with this, the defence set down a 3 day trial unilaterally.
the claimant’s lawyer said that the assessment likely can be done within the three days set aside for trial, however, she said that the trial time estimate was inadequate because the defendants denied liability and the trial would likely take 5 to 7 days. The Court adjourned the trial and took the case off of Fast Track finding, Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Car Accident Claim, Car accident lawyer, fast track litigation, Lawyers in BC, Negligence, New Civil Court Rules, Personal Injury lawyer, Personal Injury Lawyers
Posted in British Columbia Lawyers, Car Accident Lawyer, ICBC Car Accident, ICBC Lawyers, ICBC Pedestrian Accident, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Personal Injury Lawyers BC | No Comments »
