Djukic v. Hahn, 2007 BCSC 203
Injured couple’s award for damages upheld by the Court of Appeal.
Kevin Jarvis and John Rice were trial counsel for Mr. and Mrs. Djukic. We were asked to take this case from another lawyer two months before trial. The clients were a husband and wife couple from Serbia who operated a successful deli business when both of them were injured in a car crash on June 15, 2000. One year later Mrs. Djukic was hurt again in another crash that was also not her fault. She suffered a painful disc herniation in her back and they both suffered whiplash injuries. The Djukic’s had two children. The Djukic’s told the trial judge how their injuries had devastated their lives and their family business.
ICBC lawyers argued the business was not affected and that Ms. Djukic’s disc herniation was not caused by the car accidents.
The trial judge accepted the case argued by our lawyers, awarding the injured couple damages for their pain and suffering, business losses, and future care costs. ICBC appealed this case and lost in the Court of Appeal. This case is frequently cited by other lawyers for certain legal arguments about the need to call treating doctors to testify in court.
The full decision is available here.