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More often than you could possibly imagine, we here at Goldfinger Injury Lawyers are courted by other lawyers, professional bloggers, advertisers and spam services to post content, links etc. on the Toronto Injury Lawyer Blog.

We have never, and repeat NEVER caved. Only lawyers and other staff members of Goldfinger Law have ever posted on the Toronto Injury Lawyer Blog. All of our content is original, and is 100% Goldfinger Law. Can’t you tell? We have a certain style and panache which people have come to love.

Today is a momentous day. We are honoured to have a very special guest blogger to add his two cents on the field of personal injury law. We have allowed this lawyer to have his say on our blog because we certainly respect this lawyer’s ability, legal wit, and passion for the law.

Stephen Offenheim is a Toronto lawyer who has been practising on in the field since lord knows when. He is a seasoned litigator to say the least. Stephen has been an inspiration and has given me plenty of guidance over the years. It’s an honour to have his as the first ever guest poster on the Toronto Injury Lawyer Blog.

So, without further a due; here is the lawyer himself, Stephen Offenheim covering the topic why it’s important NOT TO LIE in your personal injury case. Enjoy!
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There are three elements to any personal injury case.

Element #1: Liability: How did the accident happen and who’s to blame? The concept of liability is straight forward in many cases. A drunk driver runs a stop sign resulting in catastrophic motor vehicle accident. Establishing liability against the drunk driver is easy to establish. The driver was drunk and on top of that, they ran a stop sign. The drunk driver is at fault of the car accident. Liability is established. Sometimes liability isn’t so clear and an engineer or another expert will need to be retained to look in to this issue. This expert will be able to tell us whether or not we have a case and whether or not we can place blame on another party of the event giving rise to the litigation.

Element #2: Damages/Injuries: What are the injuries from the car accident. Is it a simple bruise which goes away in a week, or are the injuries severe, like a brain injury along with multiple orthopedic injuries. Understanding this concept is somewhat straight forward as well for many accident victims because it’s easy to visualize and more tangible than other legal concepts. If Superman were involved in a car accident, chances are he wouldn’t have sustained any injuries or damages. Hence: he wouldn’t have much of a personal injury case if Superman weren’t injured. Sorry Superman.

Element #3: Causation: : There must be some form of connection between the Bad Guy Defendant’s conduct and the Accident Victim’s injuries. This term is sometimes called “remoteness of damage” or “proximate cause“. Either way, this third element is the most difficult for accident victims to understand.

Sometimes causation is easy to prove. Suzy broker her leg in a car accident. Suzy is seeking compensation for her broken leg from the car accident. Thomas slipped and fell and bumped his head. Thomas is seeking compensation for his head injury from the slip and fall accident.

But sometimes causation is not so simple/clear. Johnny was in a car accident and hurt his knee. Now Johnny complains of headaches, fatigue and shortness of breath. Alice was bit by a dog and sustained abrasions to her legs. Now Alice is deeply depressed and can’t sleep. Marvcus lived in a mouldy apartment building. Now Marvcus has a bad cough. Marvcus has since moved out of the apartment building but still has a bad cough and can’t sleep properly.

The focus of this edition of the Toronto Injury Blog Post will examine the concept of Causation, along with the pitfalls many of us encounter along the way. It’s dedicated to a fellow colleague of mine based out of Toronto who gave sage advice to me in my youth and was a mentor of sort in assisting me in getting in to law school, so where we go.
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In case you haven’t noticed, the white stuff we call snow is all around us. It’s causing some slippery conditions for motorists and pedestrians alike. Just getting around your respective city or town, whether it’s a booming metropolis like Toronto, or a small Town like Omemee (home of Neil Young, just outside of Peterborough), you have to be careful.

We get calls everyday from people seeking our assistance with their personal injury claim. In order to build a case from the start, we need evidence. Cases are built on evidence. Some evidence is not permanent; meaning that it can get lost or evaporate in to thin air.

Many people who are injured in an accident don’t understand this concept, and it’s very important to do so.

In a car accident case, the police are often called to the scene of the accident to investigate fault (liability). Fire and Ambulance may be called to the accident scene as well. All of these emergency personnel, in a perfect world, are supposed to take notes, interview witnesses to get their account of the story, take measurements of the accident scene, and take photos. All of that evidence gets preserved.
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Every injury case is different. That’s because every person is different; every accident is different, every injury is different; and everyone’s pre and POST accident health is different.

But, there are many similarities to personal injury cases.

For starters, all car accidents will involve some sort of motor vehicle. Liability; the legal term to describe whose fault is the accident will be examined. The severity of the injuries will be examined. And, the cause of those injuries (causation) will be examined. The concept of damages will also have to be examined.

In order for lawyers, judges and juries to get answers to the above noted topics, they will all ask very similar questions to get the information they need to assess your case.

In this respect, many lawyers can predict and prepare our clients for the questions their clients will be asked during the course of their personal injury case.

And, it’s for those very same reasons that we here at the Toronto Injury Lawyer Blog will now provide you with a list of commonly asked questions of accident victims during the course of their case. We’ve picked some pretty obvious ones, and some not so obvious ones that you would never soon guess.
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We would all like to think that the law is the quest for the truth. It’s the pursuit of justice. It’s establishing before a Court of Law, what’s right, and what’s wrong.

In a perfect world, our courts should work that way. All cases should be heard quickly, before a Judge who knows and understands the issues; before a Jury who’s interested and doesn’t dose off; where witnesses don’t lie or fabricate the truth on the stand; where experts give their honest opinion instead of what somebody pays them to say.

Unfortunately, our Justice system doesn’t work that way. All too often we see cases which are built upon fabricated, flawed, inaccurate or faulty evidence. Often cases aren’t about the truth, it’s about what can, and can’t be prove in Court. Sometimes, proving the truth gets clouded because evidence has been tampered with, destroyed, or the credibility of witnesses has been destroyed.

I was recently directed to a case from a lawyer colleague of mine in Ottawa which was covered in the Toronto Star. This case was a perfect example of how flawed or faulty evidence gets in the way of the truth and has the potential to ruin a person’s life.
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Below is a fantastic write up of Goldfinger Injury Lawyers which will be featured in the “Legal Elite” issue of London’s Business Magazine to be released in February 2015.

After several years working a reliable factory job, Ken didn’t know where to turn.

He was off work with a repetitive strain injury, initially identified as something akin to tennis elbow. Eventually, he learned that was a misdiagnosis. What he really had was spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinal canal that causes intense pain, numbness and weakness in the arms.

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One of the most important, exhausting and difficult part of any car accident or personal injury case prior to trial is the Examination for Discovery process.

An examination for discovery in Canada, is akin to a deposition in the United States. The reason I make the comparison is because with the popularity of American legal dramas such as Law & Order, Suits and Boston Legal (May you Rest in Peace), more Canadians are familiar with the term “deposition” rather than “discovery“.

Here in Canada, we use the term “discovery” to describe the process whereby one lawyer, asks a party to the legal action questions under oath which are recorded by a Court reporter.

Examinations for Discovery can take place at a variety of locations. There are professional reporting offices across Ontario. They can take place in hotel conference rooms, board rooms, even in a quiet large restaurant; provided that the parties agree to the location and there is a reporter on site to get down every word that’s said during the discovery process.

During the examination for discovery, the opposing lawyer may ask questions which you may not have the answer to immediately, but it might be at home in your records, or the information may likely become available if requested at a later date.

The lawyer representing the client being examined, can then “undertake” to provide an answer to that question at a later date (within 60 days), or undertake to request and or produce the information requested. This is called an “undertaking“. These undertakings are very important to the legal process.
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Our law firm had a record number of Long Term Disability Claims settle in the last quarter of 2014. In particular, the last month of 2014 was a mediation bonanza for our lawyers when it came resolving long term disability (LTD) disputes.

One of the things which we caution our clients on when it comes to settling LTD claims are the tax implications of the settlement.

Damages for pain and suffering are non taxable. Damages for past and future income loss are taxable. But these heads of damages apply to tort claims such as car accident and general negligence cases (slip and fall, dog bite, etc.)

But what happens for Long Term Disability Claims when it comes to tax implications for the settlement?

Look no further than the wording of your policy. I will be in there. I guarantee it!

Some policies state that benefits are taxable. This means less money in the client’s pocket because they have to pay tax on any amount recovered.

Other policies state that the benefits are NOT taxable. This is much better for the client because they don’t have to pay the tax man for any amount recovered in the case.

If you don’t know whether your LTD benefits are taxable or not, then just ask your insurance broker, union rep or even your employer who is funding the benefits. They will have an answer for you. You can also call the insurer who is underwriting the policy (Great West Life, SunLife, Manulife, Equitable Life, SSQ, RBC Insurance, Co-operators, Desjardins etc.) and ask an agent directly. They will have an answer for you as well.

Effective January 1, 2015, Revenue Canada introduced some important rule changes which impact the tax implications on any taxable LTD settlement. If you have an LTD claim before the Courts, it’s very important to understand these rule changes because they will likely impact on your settlement.
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2014 is coming to a close and what a year it’s been.

Tonight, millions of people around Ontario are getting ready to bring in the new year in style. That means parties, gatherings, food and alcohol.

Many host parties at their homes and have questions regarding the safe service and consumption of alcohol.

Here are a few quick tips for hosting a safe new years party:

1. Make sure there are non-alcohol drinking options at your party/gathering. This means water, pop, juice, non-alcohol sparkling wine/punch. Get creative and have fun with it.

2. Have the number of a taxi company or car service on site. Some taxi companies have great fridge magnets which have their contact information which are always in good taste for displaying the night of your party.

3. Have one, or more designated drivers assigned for your party
4. Offer guests to stay the night in a guest room, or even on the couch if they’ve had too much to drink and can’t get home safely
5. Know where the nearest hotel is for your guests and let them know about it if they’ve had too much to drink
6. Friends don’t let friends drink and drive. Taking away your friend’s car keys might save their lives, or somebody else’s

When I think of New Years, I think of a very tragic case which happened in Ontario on New Years and went all the way up to the Ontario Court of Appeal, and then to the Supreme Court of Canada. The case is called Childs v. Desmoreaux and can be read here.

There is a theory at law called “social host liability”. This is when the injured accident victim seeks compensation from the injuries not just from the at fault drunk driver, but ALSO from the host of the party for over serving or not being responsible in the safe service of their alcohol at the party which the at fault driver attended before the drunk driving collision.
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We often get calls from people who have received, or are in the process of receiving WSIB (Worker’s Compensation) Benefits and now want to sue their employer.

Let me preface this Toronto Injury Lawyer Blog by stating that our law firm DOES NOT handle WSIB matters. There are a handful of lawyers across the province who practice in this area, but those numbers are dwindling for a variety of reasons which should be the subject of a different blog post.

In any event, there are situations where an employee gets injured in the course of their employment. The employer may file a claim to the WSIB. The reason the employer does this so quickly, is because it’s the LAW to report any workplace injury to WSIB and to open a claim.

It’s then up to the injured employee to decide whether or not they want to pursue a WSIB claim, or whether or not they want to SUE using lawyers like the ones from Goldfinger Injury Lawyers. You CANNOT do both! In some instances, you cannot sue regardless of the situation. This all depends on whether or not your employer is designated as a Schedule 1 or Schedule 2 employer. The good people at the WSIB will be able to assist you in that regard. You can find out more information on the WSIB from their website at WSIB.ON.CA
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167 Sheppard Ave W
Toronto, ON M2N 1M9
Phone: (416) 730-1777 Toll Free: (877) 730-1777 Fax: (416) 730-0955
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London, ON N6A 2R5
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Peterborough, ON K9H 3R5
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Owen Sound, ON N4K 2H8
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