Your Personal Injury Lawyers
Call 1-888-404-5167
Preszler Injury Lawyers

Recovering Damages in Toronto Dog Bite Cases

If someone else’s dog injured you in a Toronto dog attack, you might be entitled to damages. General damages are for pain and suffering, which includes loss of enjoyment of life and the ability to continue doing one’s daily activities such as housekeeping, home maintenance, and leisure activities.

Also, general damages include whether one is able to continue with their employment activities and other forms of remuneration. Special damages deal with out-of-pocket expenses and lost income as well as the future care claims one might have.

To understand the damages available in your Toronto dog bite case, it is important to consult with an experienced Toronto dog bite lawyer as soon as possible. A knowledgeable attorney can build a claim to help obtain a successful result on behalf of their client.

Contributory Negligence

If a person is partially at fault, that is considered contributory negligence. The greater the injury, the more a person should be compensated. The purpose of tort law in Toronto is to put the person back in the position that they were in before the accident.

In this case, the amount of damages that a plaintiff would receive in their Toronto dog bite case would be reduced accordingly based on the percentage of their own portion of fault.

Caps on Damages

There are caps on damages in Toronto dog bite cases. The Supreme Court of Canada fixed general damages in 1978 at $100,000, and that has been indexed now to the present. The cap on damages now is roughly $360,000 in 2017.

The cap is low at $360,000.00. Each case is supposed to be assessed individually and objectively, and that cannot happen in the case of a really severe injury with such a low cap. However, the cap on dog attack damages in Toronto should have less impact, because dog attack damages are not likely to come close to the cap in the typical dog attack case, which might involve a bite mark and some PTSD.

This means that if a person attacked by a dog somehow sustained a severe brain injury and became comatose or became quadriplegic, a person could expect to receive no more than $360,000 for pain and suffering. There is no cap on special damages, but there is a very hard cap on general damages in a Toronto dog bite case.

The caps are based on the rationale of the Supreme Court of Canada. The rationale provided is that no amount of money can compensate someone where they have a severe brain injury that leaves them in a vegetative state, and it is a matter of fairness to the defendant. For example, if a person is in that state, who is to say whether there life is worth $10 million, $20 million, $100 million, et cetera.

Understanding the Insurance Policy

Every attack is unique, and the ability to obtain damages for a Toronto dog bite case depends on whether there is insurance. Therefore, it is important right from the outset to determine whether the dog owner has insurance through a homeowner’s policy or general liability policy, because if they do not have insurance, the chances of recovery are very, very low.

 

Call us now at
1-800-JUSTICE
®

151 Eglinton Ave W,
Toronto, ON
M4R 1A6
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
4145 N Service Rd
Burlington, ON
L7L 4X6
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
2 County Ct Blvd #400,
Brampton, ON
L6W 3W8
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
105 Consumers Drive
Whitby, ON
L1N 1C4
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
92 Caplan Ave #121,
Barrie, ON
L4N 0Z7
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
380 Wellington St Tower B, 6th Floor,
London, ON
N6A 5B5
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
2233 Argentia Rd Suite 302,
East Tower Mississauga, ON
L5N 6A6
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
1 Hunter St E,
Hamilton, ON
L8N 3W1
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
459 George St N,
Peterborough, ON
K9H 3R9
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
22 Frederick Street,
Suite 700
Kitchener, ON N2H 6M6
Fax: 1-855-364-7027
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
116 Lisgar Street, Suite 300
Ottawa ON
K2P 0C2
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
10 Milner Business Ct #300,
Scarborough, ON
M1B 3C6
Toll Free: 1-888-608-2111
*consultation offices

DISCLAIMER: Please be advised that the header image and other images throughout this website may include both lawyer and non-lawyer/paralegal employees of Preszler Injury Lawyers and DPJP Professional Corporation and unrelated third parties. Our spokesperson John Fraser, or any other non-lawyer/paralegals in our marketing is not to be construed in any way as misleading to the public. Our marketing efforts are not intended to suggest qualitative superiority to other lawyers, paralegals or law firms in any way. Any questions regarding the usage of non-lawyers in our legal marketing or otherwise can be directed to our management team. Please also note that past results are not indicative of future results and that each case is unique and that case results listed on site are from experiences across Canada and are not specific to any province. Please be advised that some of the content on this website may be out of date. None of the content is intended to act as legal advice as each situation is independent and unique and requires individual legal advice from a licensed lawyer or paralegal. For legal advice on your individual situation – we can provide legal guidance after you have contacted our firm and we have established a lawyer-client relationship contractually. Maximum contingency fee charged is 33%. Finally, our usage of awards and logos for awards does not suggest qualitative superiority to other lawyers, paralegals or law firms. All awards received from third party organizations have been done so through their own reasonable evaluative process and do not include any payment for these awards except for the use of the award logos for our marketing assets. We are also proud to service additional provinces like Alberta, British Columbia and Nova Scotia.