SR Vol 24 No 5, October 2006 - Nova Scotia Barristers' Society

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Personal Injury Lawyers –Business As Usual?In nearly four decades of practice Walter Newton has handledhundreds of personal injury claims for people involved inmotor vehicle accidents. But after the provincial governmentintroduced the soft tissue injury cap three years ago, the Kentvillelawyer watched his personal injury caseload all but disappear.“There is a big empty space of cases that used to be so common,”says Newton, owner of the Newton Law Firm. “I used to see aboutfive cases a month. Now I see maybe half a dozen a year.”Luckily for Newton he was able to fill his practice with other areasof law and says his business hasn’t suffered from the decrease inpersonal injury work. But, while he hasn’t been dramatically affectedby the legislation, he feels that those unfortunate enough to beinvolved in an accident today are in much worse shape than theywould have been before the cap was introduced.“The average person today who is injured in a car accident is worseoff, with no chance to recoup their losses,” says Newton.Bedford lawyer, Barry Mason, says he definitely saw a drop in his personalinjury cases after the cap, but in spite of that is busier today thanhe was three years ago. He agrees with Newton that while some lawyersmay have felt a pinch as a result of the legislation, it’s those whohave been injured in an accident who have suffered the greater loss.“Some of these people are facing significant discrimination,” saysMason, a partner at Presse Mason.Mason feels that the reduction in personal injury cases across theprovince is largely due to the fact that many people don’t thinkthey have a right to fight the cap and will often settle for whatan insurance adjustor offers. Mason also believes that a fear ofrepercussion keeps people from going after the insurance companies.“I think that people got nervous about advancing claims becausethey thought it would increase their rates,” says Mason. “Peoplewho have been involved in a motor vehicle accident who may besignificantly injured are settlingclaims themselves, sometimes for lessthan $2500.”Cindy LockeFreelance WriterMark Dempsey, a partner at Power Dempsey Cooper & Leefe inBridgewater, says his workload was reduced significantly after theintroduction of the cap and it forced him to shift his focus to otherpractice areas.“My personal injury case load is 80 per cent less. It has had a majorimpact on my practice,” says Dempsey, adding that while he madea successful transition to other areas of law, not all personal injurylawyers were able or willing to do so.“I know of lawyers who have left the province or gone togovernment because of the cap. Some have left the practice of law.”Like Newton and Mason, Dempsey worries most about the effectthe cap has had on people who have been injured. Dempsey saysthe broad definition of a ‘minor injury’ set out in the legislationencompasses between 90 and 95 per cent of people who are injuredin car accidents.“The definition is so far reaching,” he says. “There is nothing minorabout the injuries some of these people receive.”In the first year following the introduction of the cap, Mason saysthe number of claims dropped dramatically. But he says he hasnoticed an increase in claims recently and expects that as time goesby more people will challenge the legislation.The possibility of an increase in cases may translate into newpersonal injury work for lawyers. Newton says he believes lawyersstill have an important role to play in the personal injury process,because many people don’t understand their rights and may settlewithout fully understanding what they are entitled to be paid.“No one wants motor vehicle accident litigation to be a cash cow,but there has to be representation for injured people.”October 2006 11
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SR Vol 24 No 5, October 2006 - Nova Scotia Barristers' Society

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