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www.canadianlawyermag.com 45 ous and permanent, the client then faces the "secret" $40,000 deductible that juries aren't told about. If someone is awarded $50,000, they receive $10,000. If they are awarded $35,000, they get nothing. He says getting rid of even one of those hurdles would reduce cost, create more certainty and be fairer to the accident victim. B.C.'s efforts to make claims faster and cheaper by using the CRT, which is designed as on online tribunal model, hasn't gone over well with the personal injury bar in the province. The TLABC launched a legal challenge, alleging that it's an unlawful stripping of an inherent jurisdiction of the Court of British Columbia to hear motor vehicle litigation and tort claims, which offends s. 96 of the Constitution Act. Rice says this move makes tort reform efforts in B.C. distinct from oth- er jurisdictions in Canada, where designa- tion of someone's injuries can be challenged in court, with its independence constitution- ally protected, in front of somebody trained to assess and weigh evidence. The CRT, designated as having "specialized expertise" under the Administrative Tribunals Act, can only be challenged in court if the tribunal's findings can be deemed "patently unreason- able," the highest and most limited standard of review. "Unlike everywhere else, that's a uniquely draconian component to the injury cap re- more modest injury claims that are arguably worth less money. "While all of these limitations are bad, On- tario's is really punishing, on all sides — in- surance companies have to spend all of that money also on medical reports and legal fees," he says. Wagman advocates for removing at least one of the hurdles in Ontario's system, which he calls "the double whammy." There's a ver- bal threshold that says nobody in the province injured in a car accident can get any com- pensation for pain and suffering unless they have a permanent and serious injury. Wag- man says that's a much more significant bar. Second, if it can be proven an injury is seri- L. CRAIG BROWN RICHARD C. HALPERN LEONARD H. KUNKA DAVID F. MACDONALD SLOAN H. MANDEL MICHAEL L. BENNETT DARCY R. MERKUR ALEKS MLADENOVIC ROBERT M. BEN IAN W. K. FURLONG KATE CAHILL STACEY L. STEVENS STEPHEN M. BIRMAN DEANNA S. GILBERT CARR HATCH LUCY G. JACKSON ADAM J. KARAKOLIS AVA N. WILLIAMS TRUST WELL PLACED Since 1936, Thomson Rogers has built a strong and trusting relationship with lawyers across Ontario. For information about our Lawyer Referral Program, visit: www.thomsonrogers.com/referrals + T: 416.868.3100 TF: 1.888.223.0448 www.thomsonrogers.com