When you think of a car accident case, the basic premise is that there was an accident; an at fault party; and the at fault party is responsible to pay for the injured party’s damages and losses.
Some cases certainly work that way. But the vast majority of cases do not.
There are a lot of moving parts behind the scenes which non-lawyers rarely see; but which lawyers see all too often.
These moving parts have to deal with insurance coverage. Insurance coverage will result in the defendant’s ability to pay for a Plaintiff’s damages and losses.
You see, it’s not enough for a Defendant to be found responsible for pay for the damages and losses in a personal injury lawsuit.
Just because a Defendant is deemed responsible, does not translate into a Defendant’s ability to pay for those losses. This is a very important distinction.
Take the example of a Defendant who has no assets to his/her name, and who is in tremendous debt. How would that individual Defendant have the ability to pay out of a Judgment awarded against him/her? It wouldn’t be possible unless that Defendant was put on some sort of payment plan which s/he would never be able to fulfill. In Canada, simply because you don’t pay a debt does not mean that you go to jail. Nor does it mean that you have to give up all of your worldly belongings.
And it’s for these very reasons that the topic of insurance coverage is so important in a personal injury case. Coverage will determine whether or not there are real assets there for a Plaintiff to recover upon. It will also determine who is responsible to pay for what. Continue reading →