The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

25 Years of Helping Our Community Hear! 13 Personal injury law | Stouffville Sun-Tribune | Thursday, September 17, 2015 What Are You Waiting For? There's Never Been a Better Time to Start Hearing What You've Been Missing! UP TO How to Put a Price on Pain four-and-a-half-year-old girl who was rendered partially paralyzed and severely brain injured after stepping into traffic from behind an ice cream truck. defendants' argument that they should only be responsible for the cost of institutionalized care, as opposed to "luxurious" home care. The $362,678 cap remains, but it has been eroded over the past 10 years in Ontario. In 2003, the government granted automobile insurance companies a $30,000 deductible on claims valued under $100,000. This August, reforms to automobile insurance legislation increased these deductibles with inflation. Effective August 31, 2015 the new deductible is $36,450, and the $100,000 benchmark is raised to $121,799. Juries are unaware and not told about the deductible. There are limits on what plaintiff lawyers can say to help juries value such losses. Meanwhile, the defendant can appear reasonable in suggesting $35,000 or less, knowing it really means zero, or $120,000 knowing it really means $83,550. Nevertheless, with a compelling narrative and the support of a victim's friends, family and treatment providers, fair awards are available. We are proud of our precedent-setting decisions in relation to kneeinjuries,burninjuries, chronic pain and facial disfigurement, which have been recognized as the highest awards for pain and suffering in their category, when they were decided. $ FREE PARKING* OFF* 2400 Markham A pair of the latest technology hearing aid instruments. Hurry! Offer expires September 30th, 2015 *See clinic for details. Conditions may apply Darcy Darcy is a lawyer with Boland Howe LLP, Trial Lawyers for the Injured, and can be reached at 905.841.5717 www.bolandhowe.com Canadian Lawyer Magazine has recognized BolandHowe as one of the Top 10 Personal Injury law firms in Canada. TORONTO HEARING SERVICES 340-1333 Sheppard Ave. E., The Audiology Centre North York Markham Stouffville Hearing Services 416-498-4151 905-471-4327 203-377 Church St. 711-1243 Islington Ave. West End Hearing Services Etobicoke The dilemma, of course, is the impossibility of measuring pain and the absurdity of translating it into money. However, the alternative of saying there should be no compensation since it can't be perfectly done, is equally absurd. Undeniably there is profound loss; the problem is in the measuring. The court was concerned that leaving juries unfettered to select what number they considered just, would produce wildly variable and unpredictable results, as demonstrated in the USA. However, the court was also against a tariff system, which prevailed in the days of King Alfred, when a thumb was worth 30 shillings. Instead the court preferred a combined approach where the jury assesses the loss of the individual person, but the maximum amount that can be awarded is capped. In 1978, it was capped at $100,000 (which in 2015 equates to $362,678). While this seems low to most people, the cap was part of a trade-off, with the Supreme Court emphasizing that victims should be compensated for the future losses of income on a tax-free basis and their future care needs. In particular, the court rejected the 416-233-8581 www.torontohearingservices.com T NEW MEMBERS WANTED MALES / FEMALES 12-18 yrs Get Community Service Hours for your High School Diploma Build Character, Leadership and Self-Discipline Learn to teach and speak publicly Participate in Sports, Music, Camping, Marksmanship, Flying, Travel, and more · Free Summer Course, Employment and International Exchanges! · · · · Oscar Peterson Public School, 850 Hoover Park Drive, Stouffville Every Tuesday at 6:30 pm, Open House Sept 22 416-229-0707 www.707marion-orr-aircadets.com Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron 707 Marion Orr CM he year was 1978. Pierre Trudeau was prime minister. Saturday Night Fever and Star Wars were in theaters. McCartney was with Wings. Lennon was with Yoko. And Apple was in its first year of sales. On January 19th, 1978 three tragic cases all rose to the Supreme Court of Canada, where nine judges decided how Canadian law would compensate the injured for pain and suffering. In Andrews v. Grand and Toy, Jim Andrews was an 18-year-old who was rendered quadriplegic in a car accident. In Thornton v School District 57, Gary Thorton was an 18-year-old who was rendered quadriplegic in a gymnastics accident at school. In Arnold v. Teno, Diane Teno was a STK After School tAekwondo · Pickup and Transport · Active Games · Full Taekwondo · Homework lessons · Snack Time · Glad Park · st Marks · st Brigid · harry Bowes · summitview · OPPs · Wendat · st Brendan Martial arts teaches: Confidence, Self Control, Self Discipline, Respect & how to "Stick-To-It"! Spots filling fast for 2015/16 email for info: info@s-t-k.ca 30 Innovator Dr., Unit 10 · 905-591-4785 · www.s-t-k.ca The advice offered in this column is intended for informational purposes only. Use of this column is not intended to replace or substitute any professional, financial, medical, legal, or other professional advice.