Damages for Emotional or Psychological Injuries

If you are injured in an accident, one of the first things you will likely do is see your doctor to get treatment for your injuries. Physical injuries are often easy to see and might take the form of cuts, bruises or broken bones. By contrast, emotional or psychological injuries from an accident may not be so readily apparent and can sometimes take time to manifest.

A study published in 2018 found that individuals involved in car accidents are at increased risk for a variety of psychiatric disorders, and that post-traumatic stress disorder (“PTSD”) in particular can be a concern for people involved in motor vehicle accidents. Continue reading

Update on Parental Negligence and Liability in Personal Injury Cases Involving Children

In an earlier blog post CAM LLP canvassed what happens when a child is injured while a passenger in a vehicle driven by a family member. A recent decision from the New Brunswick Court of Appeal, Edmondson v. Edmondson, 2022 NBCA 4, granted summary judgment to the legal representatives of a five-year-old child against his father for injuries suffered while a passenger on the father’s motorcycle, and found the father liable squarely on the basis of his parental negligence.

The case highlights the high degree of care that a parent must take while transporting their child, should the worst happen and they are in a motor vehicle accident. Continue reading

Mitigation and Returning to Work After an Injury: What you Need to Know

Your duty to mitigate by returning to work

All personal injury plaintiffs are required to try and minimize their damages. This is called the duty to mitigate. Essentially, it means that even if someone else’s negligence caused your injuries, you have a responsibility to take all reasonable steps to heal from your injuries as best you can and to reduce any negative consequences from your injuries. If you could have taken reasonable actions to avoid or minimize a loss and you chose not to, damages for that loss will not be recoverable as our courts consider it unfair to make a defendant pay for losses that a plaintiff could have reasonably avoided. Continue reading