General Damages in Atlantic Canada, the Guide

General damages are the part of a personal injury award that pays for pain and for the enjoyment of life the injury took away. They are separate from wage loss and treatment costs, which come with pay stubs and receipts behind them. No receipt can prove pain, so courts fix the amount by comparing the injury in front of them with the awards in decided cases. This guide states how that comparison works for each kind of injury, one chapter per body part or condition.

Judges Value Pain by Comparing Decided Cases

There is no formula. A judge reads what the reported cases awarded for similar injuries, then adjusts for the person in the courtroom. The severity of the injury, how long it lasts, the age of the injured person and what the injury stops them doing all move the number. Two people with the same fracture can receive different awards because the fracture affected their lives differently.

A Ceiling From 1978 Sits Over the Worst Injuries

In 1978 the Supreme Court of Canada decided three companion cases, led by Andrews v Grand and Toy Alberta Ltd, and set an upper limit of $100,000 on non-pecuniary damages, the category that includes general damages. The limit has been indexed to inflation ever since, and only catastrophic injuries approach it. The trilogy is on CanLII. The spinal cord chapter explains how the cap works in practice.

Three Provinces Cap Minor Injuries From Car Crashes

New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island each cap general damages for defined minor injuries suffered in motor vehicle collisions, and Newfoundland and Labrador does not. The caps apply only to injuries that meet a narrow regulatory definition. The definitions, and what takes an injury outside them, are explained under neck and whiplash injuries. The firm handles the cap argument on most car accident files, and works with no fee unless the claim resolves.

General Damages Are Assessed Injury by Injury

General damages are assessed injury by injury, from brain injury, concussion and psychological harm, through chronic pain, the spine, and each limb and joint, to internal injuries. The process questions run from proving the claim to settlement. What the firm does with an injury claim, step by step, is on what we can do for you.