Injury Lawyers Since 1984
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Call Us 1-844-837-6583
At Boland Romaine LLP We help psychiatric injuries victims across the GTA and the Province of Ontario. If you have been seriously hurt, we encourage you to call our office today and arrange for a free consultation to discuss your rights and how we can help.
Psychiatric injuries, also known as psychological injuries or mental health disorders, can have severe and long-lasting effects on an individual’s life. These injuries often arise from traumatic experiences, accidents, or the negligence of others. In a bustling city like Toronto, where traffic accidents, workplace incidents, and personal injuries are common, the need for legal representation in psychiatric injury cases has become increasingly important.
When They Fight, We Fight Harder
Navigating the legal system after suffering a psychiatric injury can be daunting. Victims often face the challenge of proving that their mental health has been affected due to someone else’s negligence or wrongful actions. This is where the expertise of a psychiatric injury lawyer becomes invaluable.
Psychiatric injury lawyers in Toronto specialize in personal injury law, with a focus on cases involving emotional and psychological harm. They assist clients in seeking compensation for the damages caused by psychiatric injuries, which may include:
A psychiatric injury is a form of mental or emotional harm caused by a traumatic event or series of events. These injuries can result from various incidents, including car accidents, workplace accidents, medical malpractice, harassment, or violence. Unlike physical injuries, psychiatric injuries are often invisible, making them more challenging to diagnose and prove in a legal setting. Common psychiatric injuries include:
These injuries can profoundly impact a person’s ability to work, maintain relationships, and lead a normal life. As a result, victims of psychiatric injuries may require long-term therapy, medication, and other treatments to manage their symptoms. The cost of this care can be overwhelming, especially when combined with the emotional toll of the injury itself.
The law does not expect people to be free from injury or illness before an accident. Quite often, people have pre-existing psychological health conditions. Sometimes these events are related to a discrete event, like job loss or a divorce, and the condition often resolves. Other conditions are long-standing, such as a generalized anxiety disorder, mild depression, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
At law, it is not the significant diagnosis but the change in your ability to function caused by the accident. Someone with mild depression may work full time, have a family, coach his daughter’s soccer team, and manage well on anti-depressant medication. Then, following an accident, that depression may deepen and then absences at work occur or lengthen, participation with the family diminishes, hygiene diminishes etc. A lawsuit primarily tries to restore a person’s lifetime financial trajectory, and it tries to provide funding for future treatment and services to diminish the impact of an injury. Accordingly, the most important in a lawsuit is the change in a person’s ability to function following an accident and the economic consequences of that impaired ability to function.
Typically, insurance companies try to establish that a person’s current level of function results from a prior psychological injury. This leads to an interesting debate between legal doctrines with historically crass titles: “thin skull” versus “crumbling skull.” The thin skull doctrine recognizes that some people are more vulnerable to the effects of injury than others and that those who harm a more vulnerable person are nevertheless responsible for the full extent of the injuries. The crumbling skull doctrine holds that if a pre-existing condition was bound to worsen, then the defendant is only responsible for the losses caused during the time that the condition was accelerated.
In psychological claims, often, the insurer will acknowledge a brief period of disruption but will ultimately blame the current status of the injured person on prior conditions.
Much of this debate is beyond the control of anything the injured person can do. Experts will have their opinions. However, the injured person can work with their injury lawyer to identify people who can give statements about the injured person’s level of function before the accident. The opinions of an expert about what a person was like are typically no match for a variety of people coming forward to describe their interactions with the person before the accident.
The other critical help the injured person can provide is their own sincerity in acknowledging their prior injuries. Cases involving psychological injuries put the injured person’s credibility at the forefront. Accordingly, it is critical to be sincere about your prior health issues.
In a lawsuit, it is not the diagnosis but the change in your ability to function that matters. While not meeting a full-scale definition will have implications for the experts who rely on case studies and clinical experience to gauge the severity and to make predictions into the future, and diminishes the persuasive value to a person who doesn’t need to meet the full diagnostic criteria to have a successful claim.
Lawsuits try to restore you to the financial position you would have been in had the accident not occurred. If psychological symptoms reduce an injured person’s ability to earn income or increase an injured person’s care needs, then there is a claim.
In the 2017 Supreme Court of Canada case Saadati v. Moorhead, 1 SCR 543, the Court said, in paragraph two, “This Court, however, never required claimants to show a recognizable psychiatric illness as a precondition to recovery for mental injury. Nor, in my view, would it be desirable for it to do so now.”
Proving psychiatric injuries in court can be more complex than physical injuries. Unlike a broken bone or a visible wound, psychiatric injuries often do not have tangible evidence, and their symptoms may not be immediately apparent. To build a strong case, psychiatric injury lawyers in Toronto work with mental health professionals, such as psychologists and psychiatrists, who can provide expert testimony.
These professionals assess the extent of the injury, its impact on the victim’s life, and whether it was directly caused by the incident in question. In addition to expert testimony, lawyers may rely on medical records, witness statements, and documentation of the victim’s behavioral changes after the traumatic event.
Victims of psychiatric injuries in Toronto may be entitled to various forms of compensation, depending on the circumstances of their case. Compensation is typically divided into two main categories: economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages are quantifiable financial losses resulting from the injury. These may include:
Non-economic damages are more subjective and compensate for the emotional and psychological impact of the injury. These may include:
In some cases, victims may also be awarded punitive damages, which are intended to punish the wrongdoer for particularly egregious behavior. This is more common in cases involving intentional harm, such as assault or harassment.
As a potential client, don’t hesitate to ask for proof of the trial record of lawyers as a sign of their professional personal experience. All trials are documented, with either written verdicts or reported decisions. As your personal injury lawyer, we can show you our history and provide evidence as to just how good we are. If your future is going to be based on evidence, we think so should your search for a legal representative.
In Toronto, like the rest of Ontario, there are strict time limits, or statutes of limitations, for filing personal injury claims, including those involving psychiatric injuries. Generally, victims have two years from the date of the incident to file a lawsuit. However, in some cases, such as when the injury is not immediately recognized, the clock may start ticking later.
It is crucial for victims to seek legal advice as soon as possible after an incident to ensure they do not miss the deadline for filing a claim. A psychiatric injury lawyer in Toronto can guide clients through the process, ensuring that all necessary steps are taken promptly.
Psychological injuries in personal injury claims often arise from a head injury. Physical changes to the brain can lead to any number of psychological diagnoses.
Psychological injuries, particularly depressive and anxiety disorders, have also been known to arise over time following a personal injury due to ongoing or chronic pain and associated lifestyle changes.
Lastly, the courts have acknowledged that psychological injury can occur independently of any physical injury. Examples of this could be:
Keeping a diary of your daily experiences and noting how your injuries impact your normal activities, such as bending or walking, is highly recommended. If your court case extends over several years after the accident, this diary can serve as a valuable tool to help refresh your memory. Additionally, retain anything related to your injuries, such as prescriptions, medical aids, or relevant photographs. These items are considered objective evidence and are highly regarded in accident cases.
Motorcycle accidents require skilled and experienced personal injury lawyers. Those injured in motorcycle accidents often suffer from polytraumatic, serious, and catastrophic injuries, including brain injuries, internal injuries, concussions, and orthopaedic and bone fractures typically requiring surgery. Many motorcycle accidents involve fatalities. Depending on the severity of these injuries, injured persons may require extensive medical treatment and either miss significant time from work or be disabled from work completely.
When other personal injury lawyers choose the easiest path and settle, we stay the course and fight for what your case is truly worth based on the injuries and losses you have suffered.
Boland Romaine has a proven track record of obtaining significant settlements for clients, including multi-million-dollar awards for catastrophic injuries such as spinal cord injuries and traumatic brain injuries. Their unwavering commitment to excellence has earned the firm recognition in prestigious legal directories, including Best Lawyers in Canada and the Lexpert directory.
For those whose lives have been profoundly impacted by car accidents, Boland Romaine offers free consultations to discuss potential claims and provide guidance on the legal process. The firm’s compassionate and dedicated team is committed to helping clients rebuild their lives after devastating accidents, ensuring they receive the justice and support they need to move forward.
Operating on a contingency fee basis, Boland Romaine ensures that clients do not pay legal fees unless their claim is successfully resolved. This approach makes legal representation accessible to everyone, regardless of their financial situation. By focusing on a select number of seriously injured clients, the firm provides personalized attention and dedicated resources to achieve the best possible outcomes.
Gather the Evidence Make an Informed Decision
A car accident lawyer who is either afraid, inexperienced, or cannot afford to go to trial may ultimately end up costing you thousands in compensation you are rightfully owed.
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If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury due to someone else’s negligence, you may be able to advance a claim for personal injury. The facts and circumstances of each case are unique, as well as the legal elements required to be satisfied. Consulting an experienced personal injury lawyer to discuss your case and provide advice on whether you have a case is the next step.
If your LTD claim has been denied, a disability lawyer can help by:
Don’t speak to the adjuster from the insurance company.
When you consult with us, we will advise you as to your rights and options and we will help you understand your insurance policy and its terms. You may have different options available to you such as suing the other driver or you may be eligible for income replacement benefits and short-term disability.
we don’t require much information at our initial consultation, other than your memory of when, where, and how the accident happened; what injuries you’ve sustained and how it’s affected you.
Each personal injury case is unique, which is what constitutes the long durations until a settlement is achieved. Several factors go towards determining a fair value for your case. That includes, but is not limited to, the severity of the injury, the medication and treatment required for recovery, physical and mental therapy for further rehabilitation, compensation for pain and suffering, expenses required to maintain a living across a period when you are unable to return to regular activities, etc
The most important thing to do after an incident resulting in a personal injury is to focus on recovery. The next step is to start doing research for a personal injury lawyer that is right for you. Look for information regarding their qualifications, experience, and reputation among their peers.
Also consider these critical steps after an injury after seeking medical help.
In most cases, you have 2 two years from the date of the incident to file a lawsuit. This is called the limitation period. If you were injured while you were a minor, you have two years from the date you turn 18 to file a lawsuit or two years from the date a litigation guardian is appointed on behalf of the minor. In certain circumstances, this general limitation period of 2 two years from the date of the incident does not apply. The period may be longer, or it may be shorter. For this reason, it is important to contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible to start the process of filing your lawsuit.
If you need a car accident lawyer in your area, start by researching local law firms that specialize in personal injury and accident claims. Look for lawyers with experience handling cases like yours, strong client reviews, and a track record of success.
At Boland Romaine, our Toronto-based car accident lawyers have extensive experience managing complex claims, ensuring our clients receive the legal guidance and compensation they deserve.
Our Psychiatric Injury lawyers know exactly how to build a strong case and will help guide you through the process. We will advise you on the most relevant evidence to include in order to show how your injury has affected your life.
Building a strong case means we will:
A Boland Romaine car accident lawyer will plan out your case using all the information available and present it in the best way possible. This gives you peace of mind throughout the process that you will have the best chance at receiving fair compensation.
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