LEGAL REPORT
40 www.canadianlawyermag.com
PERSONAL INJURY
ACROSS CANADA, trial wait times are
plaguing the personal injury field, and
plaintiff 's and insurance-defence lawyers
are lamenting the many years it takes to
close files.
Causes vary from province to province
and, in some regions, cases linger longer
than others. For injured people, bills pile
Trial delays add
insult to injury
Lawyers in personal injury disputes say that, throughout much of Canada, trial
delays make a mockery of access to justice for plaintiffs and defendants.
up, critical support is inaccessible and
some are forced to use litigation loans at
exorbitant interest, say their lawyers. On
the other side, insurance companies rack up
huge legal bills as litigation can stretch on
for the better part of the decade.
"The delays are really untenable," says
Cuming & Gillespie's James Cuming, a
personal injury lawyer from Calgary, who
says the average three-week trial includes
a 24-to-36-month wait. "It's a difficult
situation."
Troy Lehman practises in Barrie, Ont.
He says the inability to get cases before a
judge within a reasonable time frame is an
access-to-justice issue that he's seen grow in
