Uncategorized Archives - Page 4 of 29 - Halifax Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

August 1st, 2014

What is a Pecuniary Loss in a Nova Scotia Personal Injury Claim?

One of the most popular articles on this blog is one that I wrote in July 2010 “What is a Pecuniary Loss in a Personal Injury Claim?” The article has received thousands of page views since it was published so the topic is one that is obviously of some interest to people doing research on the internet. I thought that it would be worth updating the article and providing some more information.

Pecuniary Losses Defined

The online Law Dictionary defines a pecunairy loss as: “A loss that can be defined in money terms”.

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July 24th, 2014

Court Orders NBFL to Pay Interest on Litigation Loans in Knowledge House Claims: Why is this decision important to plaintiffs throughout Nova Scotia?

by John McKiggan

Justice Warner has issued his order for costs in favour of the successful Plaintiffs in their claim against National Bank Financial Limited (NBFL) relating to the collapse of Knowledge House Inc (KHI).

This is just the latest chapter in the ongoing litigation that has gone on for more than 10 years since Knowledge House Inc. collapsed in the fall of 2001.

Last year, Justice Warner ordered NBFL to pay the successful plaintiffs more than two millions dollars in compensatory damages and $200,000.00 in punitive damages as a result of share losses suffered by the plaintiffs after the collapse of KHI.

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July 22nd, 2014

Safety Tips for National Drowning Prevention Week

by John McKiggan

This week is National Drowning Prevention Week.

According to statistics from the Life Saving Society of Nova Scotia this week experiences the highest number of drowning’s compared to other weeks in the year.

Boaters most at risk

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July 4th, 2014

Halifax get ready for Arthur!

by John McKiggan

Just a quick reminder for anyone who hasn’t been next to a radio, television or newspaper in the last few days…the first Hurricane of the year is expected to make landfall in Halifax this weekend.

Hurricane Arthur is expected to be downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it reaches Halifax. Even so Environment Canada has issued a weather alert:

Tropical storm-force winds of 70 gusting to 100 km/h over exposed areas from Hurricane Arthur can be expected over the above regions.

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June 19th, 2014

Summary Judgment in Nova Scotia: Blunden Construction Ltd. v. Fougere

by John McKiggan

The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal recently released its reasons in Blunden Construction Ltd. v. Fougere. The case is important because it reviews the law regarding summary judgment and provides an analysis of the test for summary judgement outlined in the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal’s decision in Burton Canada Co v. Coady and reconciles it with the recent decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in Hryniak v. Mauldin.

Background Facts

The Plaintiff, William Fougere was a teacher who became ill with a lung condition that he claimed was caused by dust produced during construction of an elevator inside the school where Fougere worked. Fougere sued the construction company, Blunden Construction Limited who joined the architectural firm, Fowler, Bauld & Mitchell Limited as a third party.

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May 30th, 2014

Can Children Suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress After a Car Accident?

by John McKiggan

According to a study conducted in Sweden the answer is most certainly yes!

Research conducted at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden determined that approximately 30% of children injured in car accidents end up suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Long lasting effects
The research by Eva Olofsson went on to determine that up to 20% of children still suffer from the mental and psychosocial effects of PTSD up to a year post accident.

Psychological injuries last longer than physical injuries?

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May 22nd, 2014

Halifax Police Looking for Hit and Run Driver after Woman Hit in Crosswalk: Hit and Run Injury Claims in Nova Scotia

by John McKiggan

Halifax Regional Police are looking for a hit and run driver who struck a 22 year old pedestrian who was crossing North Park Street at a marked crosswalk. She was hit by a car turning left from Cogswell Street that left the scene of the accident.

CTV News reported that the pedestrian was taken to the hospital with “non-life threating injuries.”

Fortunately the pedestrian in this accident does not appear to have been seriously hurt. But even non-life threatening injuries can cause long term pain, inconvenience and income loss.

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May 22nd, 2014

Summer vacation is coming. But your travel insurance may not protect you the way you expect.

by John McKiggan

School is winding up for the year and families are preparing for summer vacation. For many familes that means trips to the United states or somewhere else outside of Canada. careful parents usually include travel health insurance on their “to do” list when getting ready for family travel.

But does travel insurancce protect you the way you think it does?

Travel Insurance Company Denies Couples Huge Medical Bill Claim

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February 26th, 2014

Helmets a Poor Source of Protection from Concussions

by John McKiggan

Obviously a football player would never go onto the field without his/her helmet. But a new study concludes that helmets may provide a false sense of security when it comes to protecting players against the effects of concussion.

Concussions a Major Risk for Young Athletes

One of the co-authors of the study, Dr. Frank Conidi stated “protection against concussion and complications of brain injury is especially important for young players, including elementary and middle school, high school and college athletes, who’s still developing brains are more susceptible to the lasting effects of trauma”. Conidi is the Vice Chair of the American Academy of Sports Neurology Section.

Only a 20% Risk Reduction

Researchers tested the ten most popular football helmet designs to see how well they protected against traumatic brain injury. The office of the study found that football helmets only reduce the risk of traumatic brain injury by about 20% compared to wearing no helmet at all. While 20% is not insignificant it is a surprisingly low figure and one that seems counterintuitive.

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February 25th, 2014

Tracking chronic pain symptoms: There’s an app for that

by John McKiggan

One of the things I deal with every day as a personal injury lawyer in Nova Scotia are clients who have suffered significant injuries that result in long term chronic pain.

Invisible injury

Chronic pain cases can be difficult to prove because the injury is invisible. There is no X-ray that you can produce to show the client’s broken bone, no photographs of scars, and there is no such thing as a “Pain-o-Meter” to show the extent and what kind of pain the client is suffering.

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Category: Uncategorized