Category: Traumatic Brain Injury

Personal injury law and the claims associated with it could get quite overwhelming at times as there are tons of things that have to be taken into account. However, when it comes down to it, you have to understand that one of the most important figures in the context of your long term disability claim can be your own personal family doctor.

Now, unlike in the USA, as a citizen of Canada, visiting a medical doctor is free of charge. This is a particularly stellar consideration that needs to be taken into account. From a medical perspective you don’t have to pay tremendous amounts of money in order to get better. From a legal perspective it puts the victim in the driver seat to build his case with thorough and extensive medical evidence. And, when it comes to long term disability claims, you have to understand that they are built upon nothing but evidence.

The plaintiff has to be able to prove their case as well as their oral testimony in order to get the compensation that he’s going for. This is where the family doctor comes into the picture in order to provide you with a tremendously helping hand. Each time you visit your own personal family doctor, he is supposed to take particulate notes which contain information regarding your complaint as well as the medical opinion, diagnosis, prognosis, treatment recommendations and quite a lot of other things. These are the things that your injury lawyer is going to rely on in order to make a proper long term disability claim. They provide thorough and clear insight in the nature of your injury, complaints and pain as well as the quality of the life.

So, if the medical note of your family doctor says that you’ve appeared in fine condition without exhibiting any symptoms of significant pain, it’s highly unlikely that you can build a case for long term disability built on the premise of severe chronic suffering.  However, it is important that the injury is evaluated properly immediately after you get injured. Keep the documentation and diagnostic reports safely because they will be needed when you file for a claim.

These sorts of records are particularly important and valuable in terms of evidence in any personal injury case. Of course, the role that your family doctor plays in the entire situation is far more important than just serving as a carrier for certain notes. He’s going to be there for your complaints and he’s going to make sure that everything that’s required is taken care of. With this in mind, he might as well turn to be the person that you can rely upon the most. He’s the professional who’s going to refer you to x-rays, MRIs, CT scans and whatever you can think of and he’s the one who’s going to exercise preliminary treatment plans.

Motorcycling is a thrilling activity which is extremely popular among the community of Ontario. The abundance of incredible landscapes, views as well as the overall great road conditions in Stouffville are some how predisposing riders to get on the road. However, motorcycling is a dangerous activity as you are literally exposed in the event of any kind of accident. This is also the main reason for which the traumas associated with accidents are generally a lot more severe in comparison to those that you’d get in a car crash of the same severity. After all, there are no additional roll bars to protect you and the only thing that is going to keep you safe is your helmet and driving gear. This is the main reason for which you should make sure to wear all the required pieces of equipment when you decide to hit the road.

However, regardless of how well you take care of your motorcycle and the quality of your equipment, accidents happen in Stouffville. The following takes a closer look at the most common injuries, which are associated with motorcycle accidents. Almost all of them can be classified as orthopedic injuries but there is also a high chance of brain as well as spinal cord injuries. In any case, these are the most common ones of them:

• Contusions
• Concussions
• Brain and spinal cord injuries
• Hematomas
• Lacerations and gashes
• Fractures of bones and of skull

It’s important to point out that these are just some of the traumas that you’d be susceptible of if you are involved in a motorcycle accident. Now, exploring the injuries even closer is going to let us know that the most severe consequences are obviously the brain and spinal cord injuries.

Brain and spinal cord injuries are particularly dangerous because the involve the most important parts of your body – the brain and the spinal cord. The latter is responsible for the overall functioning of your body. Your brain is the single, most important organ in your entire body and a brain related injury could cause lifelong disabilities and turn you invalid for life. This is why it’s highly advisable to wear a helmet – at least to reduce the chance of sever brain injuries.

Your spinal cord, on the other hand, is a part which is keeping your movement system intact. You can expect nothing short of paralysis and even more severe conditions if a severe spinal injury takes place. In any case, you should be thoroughly informed that there are various benefit packages available if you’ve been involved in a motorcycle accident. There are different tests which are going to determine what is your entitlement and how to obtain it.

That is one of the reasons that motorcycle riders in Ontario have to get the insurance coverage under the law before they can get the Ontario plates and are allowed to ride on the roads legally. The insurance policy includes accident benefits, uninsured automobile and direct compensation for property damages.

According to one of many legal dictionaries in Canada and the US, the basic definition of the term “emotional distress” is:

“a basis for damages claimed in a personal injury lawsuit

and based on the intentional or negligent acts of another.”

If you have recently sustained injures and have filed a personal injury lawsuit in the cities of Barrie, Orillia, or Stouffville, you may be entitled to compensation for your pain and suffering.  These damages may be are awarded in addition to economic or pecuniary damages such as lost wages, medical expenses, etc. that are directly attributed to the injuries you’ve sustained.

Components of an Emotional Distress Claim for Damages

An emotional distress claim may come in a number of different forms.  The term may be commonly referred to as:

• emotional upset
• intentional infliction of mental distress
• negligent infliction of emotional distress
• negligent infliction of psychiatric damage

Under Canadian personal injury law, the common element among these claims is that the complainant or plaintiff must establish the following two components in order for the claim to be valid:

• First, the plaintiff suffered foreseeable psychological injury due to the negligent behavior or conduct of the defendant.
• Second, the psychological injuries of the plaintiff were of such a serious nature that he or she succumbed to a well-documented psychiatric illness.Emotional distress can be very difficult to prove since there are no CT scans or X-rays that a professional can point to.  Conversely, physical injuries such as broken bones or head trauma can easily be identified with these medical technologies.
  

  Proving Emotional Distress

  If you and your Barrie, Orillia, or Stouffville personal injury lawyer intend to pursue an emotional distress claim, there are 5 ways in which proof can be established:

• Duration – as with most cases involving traumatic stress, if your pain has persisted and occurred over a lengthy amount of time, it may be easier for you to prove emotional distress.
• Intensity – the more intense your level of mental anguish is, the better your chances of proving emotional distress and being compensated for damages.
• Physician’s note – make sure that your claims are supported by a physician’s or psychologist’s documentation of your condition. Your reports are a testament of the level and amount of injuries you sustained.
• Related bodily injury – although proving emotional distress can oftentimes be difficult, you can usually provide proof of physical symptoms that are attributed to it such as headaches, ulcers, etc.
• Underlying causes – the court will be more likely to find for emotional distress if the underlying cause is extreme such as surviving a bombing compared to a motor vehicle collision.

In order to prove your claim, you may have to incorporate several of these factors.  Just keep in mind that you should be working with an experienced personal injury lawyer as well as a physician and/or psychologist. This will help you get a better representation in court.