Thomas Gold Pettingill LLP is pleased to provide this online resource to our clients. Below is a searchable database of the publicly released decisions from the Licence Appeal Tribunal. Assembled by the accident benefits group, the decisions are reviewed, briefly summarized, and categorized for easy access.
As of March 2020, we will not include any further decisions focused solely on the Minor Injury Guideline or treatment plans, unless the case may have broader applicability.
The claimant sought removal from the MIG and three treatment plans. The insurer argued that the claimant failed to attend scheduled IEs. Adjudicator Norris concluded that the insurer's IE notices complied with the SABS, and that the claimant failed to attend the IEs. He rejected the submission that the insurer had to provide the claimant...
The claimant sought removal from the MIG and entitlement to six treatment plans. Adjudicator Mather concluded that the claimant suffered from chronic pain, which was a non-"minor injury." The adjudicator accepted that pain relief was a valid treatment goal, and awarded four of the claimed treatment plans. Two of the treatment plans were denied due...
The claimant sought entitlement to two assessments, and argued that the treatment plans were denied more than 10 days after submission. The insurer argued that the claimant failed to attend IEs. Adjudicator Norris agreed with the claimant that the treatment plans had been denied more than 10 days after submission due to the deeming provision...
The insurer brought a motion to dismiss the application after the claimant's failure to submit any written materials. Adjudicator Watt granted the motion and dismissed the application. He reasoned that the claimant's failure to bring a motion to extend the deadline for submissions after retaining new counsel amounted to an abuse of process, and that...
The claimant sought removal from the MIG and entitlement to four medical benefits. Adjudicator Lester held that the claimant's disc bulges, degenerative changes, and chronic pain disorder were not minor injuries, and removed the claimant from the MIG. She also awarded the cost of a chronic pain assessment, chronic pain treatment plan, and a psychological...
The claimant sought entitlement to NEBs and the cost of an in-home assessment. Adjudicator Truong dismissed the claim for NEBs, but awarded the in-home assessment. She found the reports by the claimant's assessors to be contradictory and unhelpful in supporting the NEB claim. There were also injuries that the claimant's assessor tried to link to...
The claimant sought the cost of an orthopaedic assessment. Adjudicator Goela held that the respondent's denial letter did not provide a medical reason why an orthopedic examination was not reasonable or necessary pursuant to section 38(8) of the SABS. The denial letter stated that pursuant to the physiatrist report, further physical intervention would not affect...
The insurer sought production of the settlement documents from an earlier accident the claimant was involved in. Adjudicator Neilson ordered the records produced. She held that it was relevant to the current dispute what the claimant was paid in her earlier claim, and how the benefits were allocated. She noted that there was no evidence...
The claimant sought ongoing IRBs. Adjudicator Gosio rejected the claim. He held that the claimant had failed to meet her burden under the post-104 week test. In particular, he was critical of the claimant's assessors basing their report solely on the claimant's self-reporting, the assessors failure to consider the claimant's vocational background, and the failure...
The claimant sought entitlement to various denied catastrophic impairment assessments, and the cost of x-rays. The insurer had approved some of the catastrophic impairment assessments, but denied others. At the time of the hearing, the claimant had been declared catastrophically impaired. Adjudicator Sewrattan awarded the cost of the physiatry assessment, even though an orthopaedic assessment...
The claimant sought entitlement to six assessments to address his potential catastrophic impairment. Each assessment was in excess of $2,000. The insurer denied the assessments on the basis that the claimant had failed to prove causation (i.e. the accident was minor, and the claimant suffered psychological difficulties before the accident). Adjudicator Sewrattan granted the claimant's...
The insurer argued that the claimant was barred from seeking NEBs due to her failure to submit a Disability Certificate. Adjudicator Sewrattan rejected the insurer's position and held that the claimant likely had submitted a Disability Certificate. He relied upon a billed invoice from the clinic showing that a Disability Certificate had been completed. He...
The claimant sought entitlement to NEBs, removal from the MIG, and further medical benefits. The insurer argued that the claimant was barred from seeking NEBs due to the limitation period. Adjudicator Harmison accepted that the insurer had denied NEBs more than five years prior, and that the denial was clear and unequivocal. In terms of...
The claimant sought ongoing IRBs. Adjudicator Sewrattan dismissed the claim on the basis that the claimant had failed to prove what his essential pre-accident employment tasks were, which of those tasks he was unable to perform, and the extent to which the claimant was unable to perform those tasks.
The claimant sought entitlement to a number of medical benefits. The insurer denied the treatment and cited that the plans were not reasonable and necessary. Adjudicator Derek Grant reviewed the medical evidence and concluded that the claimant failed to establish the medical benefits sought were reasonable and necessary. The claims were dismissed.
The claimant sought reconsideration of the Tribunal's decision to deny attendant care and housekeeping benefits. The Tribunal had determined that the two year time limit for the claimant to dispute her entitlement had passed. The claimant filed her request for reconsideration outside of the 21 day period stipulated in the LAT Rules. Executive Chair Lamoureux...
The claimant sought entitlement to a psychological assessment, as well as a number of psychological treatment plans. Adjudicator Christopher Ferguson reviewed the denial letter for the psychological assessment, and determined that the Notice failed to provide medical reasons for the denial. Accordingly, by operation of section 38, the assessment was deemed payable. However, based on...
The insurer requested a preliminary issue hearing as to whether the incident in question was an automobile accident. The claimant had sustained injuries after she slipped and fell next to the passenger door of her parked vehicle. The claimant had sought benefits under the SABS, which the insurer denied as the incident did not qualify...
The claimant sought entitlement to a medical treatment plan for optometrist services. The insurer denied the plan, citing the proposal to not be reasonable and necessary. Adjudicator Gemma Harmison noted that the applicant failed to submit the disputed OCF-18 as evidence and subsequently failed to meet the burden of proof. Additionally, Adjudicator Harmison went further...
The claimant sought entitlement to a number of medical treatment plans. The insurer asserted the claimant was barred from proceeding to the LAT due to a failure to attend IEs scheduled. On review of the Notices provided, Adjudicator Rupinder Hans found the requested IEs to be reasonable. Accordingly, because the claimant failed to attend, the...
The claimant sought entitlement to income replacement benefits. The insurer denied the benefits citing a return to work. The claimant sought IRBs for the period not working as well as ongoing. Adjudicator Ruth Gottfried concluded the claimant was entitled to IRBs for the time when the claimant was not working, and should have been paid,...