The plaintiff, Beate Nkunda-Batware, was awarded $418,330 by a jury in a motor vehicle personal injury action.
The defendants brought a threshold motion, arguing that the plaintiff's injuries did not meet the statutory exceptions under subsections 267.5(3) and (5) of the Insurance Act, requiring a "permanent, serious impairment of an important, physical, mental or psychological function." The court found that the plaintiff, a "thin skull" individual with a pre-existing predisposition to depression, suffered whiplash injuries that evolved into a chronic pain syndrome directly caused by the accident.
The court preferred the plaintiff's medical experts and concluded that the plaintiff's impairments were permanent and serious, substantially interfering with her employment and daily functioning.
The defendants' threshold motion was dismissed.
