Publication
NB Amended Cap Regulation Effective July 1, 2013
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May 16, 2013
On May 7, 2013 the NB Government formally filed and enacted amendments to NB’s Injury Regulation – Insurance Act (aka the ‘cap’ legislation). The final form of the amended regulation (Final Regulation) mirrors the final draft regulation (Proposed Regulation) in most – but not all – respects. Key differences between the Proposed Regulation and the Final Regulation include:
- New Effective Date. The Final Regulation will take effect on July 1, 2013 – rather than May 1, 2013 under the Proposed Regulation – and will apply to accidents occurring on and after July 1, 2013.
- Revised Definition of “Serious Impairment”. In the Proposed Regulation, the definition of “serious impairment” included the requirement of a “substantial inability” to perform essential tasks of “employment, education, training or usual daily activities” – despite “reasonable efforts to accommodate the impairment and the plaintiff’s reasonable efforts to use the accommodation” to allow the plaintiff to continue employment, education or training. This draft “accommodation” language was apparently an attempt to legislate a claimant’s duty to mitigate. However, it likely went too far because it also appeared to impose duties on employers and educational institutions. The Final Regulation eliminates altogether this “accommodation” obligation for employers and educational institutions. An employer’s or educational institution’s legal duty to accommodate is already a reasonably well understood obligation, and exists at law even if the Regulation does not impose it; including this language was therefore unnecessary and created uncertainty.
- Inflation Adjustment. The Proposed Regulation provided for the maximum award to be adjusted annually for CPI in Canada; the Final Regulation adjusts the amount annually for CPI in NB.
Click here to read McInnes Cooper’s April 29, 2013 Legal Update, “NB’s Amended Minor Injury Cap Regulation”.
Click here to read the Final Regulation.
Please contact your McInnes Cooper lawyer or any member of our McInnes Cooper Insurance Team to discuss this topic or any other legal issue.
McInnes Cooper has prepared this document for information only; it is not intended to be legal advice. You should consult McInnes Cooper about your unique circumstances before acting on this information. McInnes Cooper excludes all liability for anything contained in this document and any use you make of it.
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