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Currently, we have what is known as a “pure tort system”, which means that you, if injured by someone driving a vehicle, have a right to seek compensation for your injuries in the courts. This either leads to settlements being reached with the insurer of the driver – usually ICBC – or a trial with a judgment.

This is in contrast to a “pure no fault system”. Under this system, if injured by someone driving a vehicle, you have no right to seek compensation for your injuries in the courts. Rather, you have to accept whatever benefits ICBC decides to pay you for your injuries.

In my opinion the “pure tort system” is the preferred system. The pure no fault system leads to injustice, unfairness, and lack of accountability for drivers who injure others.

To use a simple example, let us say your child is severely injured by a negligent driver who, while texting, runs a red light and strikes your child. Under our current system, you as parents on behalf of your child can seek compensation from that driver, which will ultimately be paid by his insurer. This ensures that your child receives financial compensation to help deal with problems arising from their injury.

However, under the pure no fault system, you as parents would have no right to seek compensation from the driver. Rather, you would have to accept whatever benefits ICBC and the government decides to pay your child, and how they decide to pay them. This of course causes significant problems because the amount they decide to pay will normally be far less than you would get in compensation from the

driver, and also because you will constantly have to be asking for the benefits, which could be reduced or cut off at any time.

I personally see no justification in a pure no fault system. It removes any financial responsibility for drivers who injure others. It puts injured people at the mercy of ICBC and the government and the benefits they decide to hand out. It is in my view a very unfair system that sacrifices the rights of injured people for the benefit of those who cause injuries.

In my next article I will discuss a “modified no fault system” – which is essentially a tort system combined with a no fault system – such as exists in Ontario.

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Under our current laws, the only individuals who can seek compensation for the death is the spouse, parents, and children. Siblings cannot make a claim.

Further, claims of this nature, with minor exceptions, are for calculated economic losses only. In other words, there is no compensation allowed for pain and suffering for the death of a loved one. While this still allows for large economic compensation claims to be advanced by surviving spouses, or by young children for the death of a parent, it does leave open situations with tragically unjust results.

For instance, if your elderly retired parent is killed in a car accident as a result of someone else’s fault, and you seek compensation from the person who caused their death, your compensation as their child will be very limited. It will be very difficult for you to show any economic loss as a result of their untimely death. At best, claims are advanced for loss of services, such as babysitting, help around the home, etc. However, the value of these in an elderly person can be quite low, depending on the circumstances.

The situation becomes even more unjust in the traumatic death of a young child. If your young son or daughter is tragically killed in a car accident, achieving compensation from the person who caused their death is very difficult. Apart from the initial expenses, such as a funeral, showing an economic loss from the passing of a young child is nearly impossible. If the child is older – perhaps in the mid to late teens – and if an argument can be made that the child would have helped to support you as a parent as they aged – then economic compensation can sometimes be achieved for this. However, generally speaking, showing an economic loss for the death of a young child is very difficult.

In my opinion, the manner in which compensation is determined for cases of fatal accidents creates inadequate and unjust results. While the compensation awarded to surviving spouses and younger children of a deceased parent may prove to be adequate as a result of the significant economic loss which can be shown, the requirement of showing an economic loss for the untimely death of an elderly retired person, or a young child, should be changed. This would help to ensure greater fairness to the surviving family members.

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If you are injured on city property, it is usually very difficult to obtain compensation. This is because the courts will not rule on how cities are to spend their resources to keep city property safe, and thus will generally not find negligence on the part of the city for failing to do so. However, it is sometimes possible to make a claim against the city. If you think you might have a claim, you should contact a lawyer right away, as claims against a city have very strict timelines – they need to be reported to the city clerk within two months, and a lawsuit needs to be commenced within six months. Failure to do either could automatically bar your claim.

If you are injured on private property – such as property owned by a shopping mall, commercial enterprise, or a residential home – then different rules apply. The courts are generally more willing to find negligence on a private property owner for failing to keep their premises safe. Also, the timelines are much broader – generally you have two years from the date you were injured to commence a lawsuit. That being said, in order to increase your chances of having a valid claim, it is far better to report the incident immediately to the property owner, take photographs of the scene demonstrating why and how you were injured (essentially photos showing what was wrong with the property that caused you to get injured), get the names of any witnesses, and seek immediate medical attention.

Overall, if you are injured on someone’s property, regardless of where it occurs, it is always better to contact a lawyer immediately to find out if you have a claim. Most personal injury lawyers will take your claim on a contingency fee basis, meaning there is no charge to talk to them to see if you have a case. If a decision is made to proceed with your claim, then most personal injury lawyers will fund all expenses, and only charge their fee when your claim settles. Therefore, it is always best to make a call right away to see if you have a case. A long delay in contacting a lawyer could jeopardize an otherwise valid claim

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Normally, such challenges are brought under the provisions of the Wills, Estates and Succession Act, which literally allow the court to change the provisions of a Will to give one or more children more money or property than the parents had intended.

This is a growing issue as we live in an aging population, and in a time when properties owned by that aging population are escalating rapidly in value – meaning that giving one child even a small percentage more of the property can literally translate to hundreds of thousands of dollars more for that child.

As a parent with property, you need to discuss the drafting of the Will carefully with an estate planning lawyer, to ensure that your wishes will be respected as much as possible. Failure to do so may leave the Will vulnerable to legal attack, and promote litigation and family discord amongst your children.

As a child, you should be aware of your rights to challenge a Will if you feel you have been unfairly provided for. Generally, the law expects parents to make adequate and fair provision for each of their children and not to unduly favour one child over another without good reason. The court does not consider gender to be a good reason to favour one child over another, or order of birth. If that, as an example, is the reason you have been unfairly provided for, you have a good chance of altering the contents of the Will. Further, even if those are not the reasons, you still may be able to alter the contents of the Will if there is no good reason to explain why one of your siblings has received much more of the property than you. If you feel unfairly provided for, you should seek advice from an estate litigation lawyer on your rights and how best to proceed. This does not necessarily mean that litigation and family discord will follow – it simply means you will know where you stand and be in a position to make an informed decision as to what is best for you.

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If you are injured on a plane, make sure your injury is immediately reported to a member of the flight crew. They will then take the appropriate action, depending on how serious your injury may be. If medical attention is required in a country other than Canada, make sure you keep all records and documents from that visit.

You are entitled to compensation when injured on a plane – the compensation will typically be paid by the insurer of the airline. However, your entitlement to compensation, how much it is, and where you can claim the compensation, is governed by various international conventions. The wording of these conventions can be confusing and difficult to understand. There are also time limits on how long you have to make the claim.

Generally, when injured on a plane, it is best to consult a British Columbia lawyer who is familiar with airline injury law to find out your rights. In most cases, if you are injured on a major airline, you can bring the claim in British Columbia, regardless of what country the plane was in when the injury occurred. Also, in many cases, the airline will not be allowed to try and blame you for causing your own injury – the only question will be how much compensation you are entitled to. Lawsuits for such injuries can generally be brought in the ordinary way in British Columbia Supreme Court.

Overall, if injured on a plane, talk to a British Columbia lawyer familiar with aviation law to find out your rights – and do it quickly, to make sure you do not miss an important claim deadline.

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One of the problems with proving a psychological injury is that they are often misunderstood, and it can be difficult to get a medical diagnosis as to what the psychological injury is.

Traditionally, Canadian law has followed the laws of England and Australia, and required that a medical diagnosis of a psychological injury is required before a person can be compensated for one. This has led to many people not being compensated for psychological injuries because there was no known medical diagnosis of what the psychological injury they had was called.

On January 16 2017 I appeared at the Supreme Court of Canada in Ottawa to argue that this traditional way of looking at psychological injuries was wrong. In particular, I argued that a person should be able to be compensated for a psychological injury notwithstanding the fact that there was no medical diagnosis for it. Opposing me were lawyers representing insurance companies from across the country.

The Supreme Court of Canada has reserved judgment, meaning that we will need to wait to find out their conclusion. My hope is that they accept my argument and will rule that psychological injuries are compensable even if there is no medical diagnosis for the injury. To me this would be the fair and just result, as it would ensure fair compensation for those who have been psychologically injured in accidents.

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