After surviving a serious accident, people who have sustained life-altering injuries may face a world of difficulties. Acquiring a physical disability can often lead to secondary disabilities, including mental health issues that may seem impossible to overcome. Mental illnesses like depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can prevent injured people from performing basic routine activities, including the duties of their jobs. To learn how an Ontario lawyer may be able to help if you are suffering from injury-related mental health concerns, click here.
Category: LTD and Disability Claims
Beginning to Understand the Long-Term Effects of COVID-19
Researchers estimate that between 10-30% of people who have contracted COVID-19 will experience lingering, often debilitating symptoms. In Canada, COVID-19 “long-haulers” have reported experiencing serious symptoms for months following their initial infection. These long-term symptoms can affect patients’ quality of life and, in many cases, their ability to perform the duties of their jobs. However, many long-haulers are struggling to find support during this difficult time. Click here to learn more.
Recovering LTD Benefits for Invisible Injuries and Illnesses
Some injuries, illnesses, and other chronic medical conditions may not manifest themselves through easily observable symptoms. However, even though the symptoms of these conditions may be “invisible” to others, they could still significantly impact a patient’s quality of life and their ability to earn a living. Since the symptoms of invisible injuries or illnesses cannot be quantified through objective medical evidence, it can be difficult for people suffering from them to receive long-term disability (LTD) benefits. Click here to read more.
Sun Life Facing Potential LTD Benefits Class Action Lawsuit
Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (Sun Life) is currently facing a proposed class action lawsuit for $10 million. The case was recently filed with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.The Sun Life class action lawsuit alleges that the company willfully miscalculated cost-of-living increases for clients receiving long-term disability benefits. The lawsuit alleges that Sun…
The Rise of Mental Health Claims During the COVID-19 Pandemic
The world as we know it has changed. The stress and anxiety of living through a pandemic has taken a huge toll on society’s mental health. If you’ve been diagnosed with a serious mental health issue that prevents you from performing the duties of your job, you may be eligible to collect long-term disability benefits. But the process of securing those benefits may not be an easy one. Click here to read more.
My Long-Term Disability Claim was Denied: What Now?
This informational page was created for Canadian long term disability insurance policyholders who have submitted a claim that has been denied. It explains what to do once you have received a denial letter from your long term disability (LTD) insurance carrier. By providing a no-nonsense description of how the appeal process works, the kinds of…
Will I be Taxed on Personal Injury Damages or Disability Benefits?
If you have been injured in an accident and are set to receive a personal injury settlement or disability benefits, one of the important questions that always comes to mind is how the benefits will be taxed. Understanding how such payments impact an individual’s tax liability is critical to determining whether a settlement and/or disability…
How is “Pain and Suffering” Determined in Ontario?
Unlike some other Canadian provinces, in Ontario, jury trials are still regularly used in civil cases such as personal injury lawsuits. Are juries really fair to accident victims? In a 2016 case, Mandel v. Fakhim, an Ontario Superior Court judge expressed the opinion that “jury trials in civil cases seem to exist in Ontario solely…
Will Accepting EI or Disability Benefits Hurt My Personal Injury Claim?
If you suffer a catastrophic injury in a motor vehicle accident, you may be legally disabled and therefore unable to return to work. Aside from any benefits you recover under your auto insurance policy, or from the negligent driver in a personal injury lawsuit, you may also qualify for other benefits, such as long-term disability…
Recent Case Examines When an Employee’s Disability Frustrates an Employment Contract
Can you be fired while on disability in Ontario? We explored that question in an article earlier this year. As we explained then, the answer to that question is that it depends—mostly on the reason you were fired. Because Ontario’s Human Rights Code (HRC) requires employers to accommodate workers’ disabilities to the point of undue…
How Much Can I Receive on Disability in Ontario?
In 2012, more than 1.6 million Ontarians over 15 years old reported having a disability. That figure represented 15.4% of Ontario’s over-15 population at that time. Disabilities often prevent a person from gainful employment, making it impossible for that person to support him- or herself.Fortunately, a disabled worker may be able to rely on one…
Disability Standards in Ontario: Own Occupation vs. Any Occupation
The 2012 Canadian Survey on Disability found that one in seven Canadians 15 years or older live with a disability that limits their daily activities. Of Canadians aged 25 to 64 with a disability, only 49% were employed, compared with 79% of those without a disability. For Canadians who cannot work because of a physical…
Discovery Transcripts in Long-Term Disability Cases
Before a personal-injury lawsuit in Ontario goes to trial, the parties engage in discovery. Discovery is a process by which the parties share information and evidence with each other to encourage a settlement and avoid “trial by surprise”—the sort of unanticipated evidence or witnesses that make fictional lawsuits so entertaining.Normally, the materials shared in discovery…
Herniated Discs: What You Need to Know
Herniated discs are no laughing matter. They’re a type of back injury that may be caused by a slip and fall injury or car accident — and you may not notice the pain right away. A herniated disc may even cause pain or discomfort to radiate down to your feet, making it difficult to enjoy…
Are Income-Replacement Benefits Taxable?
Recently, we addressed the question whether long-term disability benefits are taxable in Canada. As we saw, the answer to that question is complicated — some types of benefits are always taxable, some are never taxable, and some are only sometimes taxed. Today, we want to consider a similar question that has a much simpler answer:…
Can You Be Fired While on Disability in Ontario?
According to a Statistics Canada survey conducted in 2012, nearly 4 million Canadians had a disability that limited their daily activities, including more than 15% of Ontarians. We’ve discussed before some of the benefits available to Ontarians when a disability prevents them from earning an income through work, including: Private disability insurance purchased by the…
Does Long-Term Disability Insurance Protect Me After I am Forced to Leave My Job?
Many Ontarians have long-term disability insurance through their employers. Such policies provide income replacement if the employee is unable to return to work after other short-term disability benefits expire. In some situations, an employee may not immediately recognize to apply for long-term disability. For instance, if the employee suffered a traumatic brain injury, the more…
Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Damages in Long-Term Disability Claims
When a person is injured by another’s wrongdoing — whether those injuries are physical or emotional, as in a personal injury claim, or only legal, as in a breach-of-contract claim — Ontario law permits the injured person to sue for compensation for his or her injuries.That compensation comes in the form of damages, which are…
How Difficult is it to Prove Chronic Fatigue in a Disability Claim?
In 2015, more than 500,000 Canadians — about 1.4% of all Canadians — reported suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). CFS, also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), is a debilitating illness involving overwhelming fatigue that can prevent a person from working or even confine him or her to bed.Unable to work, many of…
How Difficult Is It to Prove Depression in an Ontario Disability Claim?
According to the World Health Organization, depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide — it affects more than 300 million people globally. In Canada, by the time a person turns 40, there is a 50% chance that he or she has, or has had, a mental illness.Thankfully, Canadian law and disability insurance policies generally…
Is Long-Term Disability Income Taxable?
It’s almost April, and that can mean only one thing: It’s tax season in Canada! By the end of the month, tens of millions of Canadians, including millions of us here in Ontario, will file their T1s for last year with the Canada Revenue Agency. For many Ontarians, this will be the first year in…
What is Ontario’s Golden Years Doctrine?
Ontario law entitles a plaintiff to recover damages from a defendant who negligently injures him or her. The goal of the law is to return the plaintiff to the original position — that is, the position the plaintiff would have been in had the injury not occurred.For some kinds of damages, like medical bills or…
Ontario Long-Term Disability Incidences on the Rise
Long-term disability (LTD) rates are on the rise. According to RBC Insurance, LTD incidence rates are expected to increase 4.7% this year compared to 2017. This may be in part related to a stronger Canadian economy — RBC has found that as gross domestic product accelerates, so do the amount of long-term disability claims.The increase…
Ontario Slip and Fall Cases: What Can Go Wrong?
We’ve discussed Ontario slip and fall cases in detail in the past. As we explained then, such cases are governed by the Occupiers’ Liability Act (OLA). The crux of the OLA is found in section 3(1), which provides that:[a]n occupier of premises owes a duty to take such care as in all the circumstances of…
Toronto Apartment-Injury Claims: What You Need to Know
In 2011, Statistics Canada published a report on injuries using information from the 2009 to 2010 Canadian Community Health Survey. It found that falls were the leading cause of injury in Canada. Among adolescents, these typically occurred while playing sports. But among seniors, falls usually occurred while walking or doing household chores.When those injuries —…
