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$90,000 Non Pecuniary Assessment for Suprascapular Nerve Injury

Written by admin on . Posted in ICBC Shoulder Injury Cases.

Reasons for judgement were released this week by the BC Supreme Court, Nanaimo Registry, assessing damages for a suprascapular nerve injury caused by a collision.

In this week’s case (Donovan v. Parker) the Plaintiff was involved in a 2009 crash.  The Defendant admitted fault.  The collision caused a nerve injury in the Plaintiff’s shoulder which resulted “in permanent damage to the infraspinatus and supraspinatus muscles of his left rotator cuff“.   In assessing non-pecuniary damages at $90,000 Mr. Justice Baird provided the following reasons:
[40]         The plaintiff is a 39 year old man who has been reduced in his physical abilities because of his injuries. His previous activities such as skiing, camping, hiking, diving, swimming, rock-climbing and water-skiing have been much circumscribed. He has been negatively affected in his ability to engage in physical activities with his children, and he has become less useful around the home that he shares with his wife and family. His mood has been affected by persistent pain. He has been noted to be short-tempered with his wife, children, co-workers and friends. The medical evidence seems clearly to establish that his injuries are permanent and that he will have to be diligent in pursuing a course of exercise and physiotherapy to maintain his present functioning.
[41]         Of the cases relied on by the defendant under this heading of damages I find Langley v. Hepner, 2011 BCSC 179, Jurczak v. Mauro, 2013 BCSC 658, Durand v. Bolt, 2007 BCSC 480 and Cimino v. Kwit,2009 BCSC 912 to be roughly analogous to the present case. The plaintiff relied on Stapley v. Hejslet, 2006 BCCA 34, Power v. White, 2010 BCSC 1084, Dycke v. Nanaimo Paving and Seal Coating Ltd. and Foster, 2007 BCSC 455, Morlan v. Barrett, 2012 BCCA 66, all of which could legitimately be argued to be analogues with the case at bar.
[42]         Based on these authorities, I conclude that an appropriate range for non-pecuniary damages in this case is between $55,000.00 and $140,000.00. Relying especially on Cimino and Stapley, which I consider to be most similar to the present case, I think a fair, just and reasonable award would be $90,000.00.
 

bc injury law, Donovan v. Parker, infraspinatus muscle injury, Mr. Justice Baird, Suprascapular nerve injury, supraspinatus muscle injury

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