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Singer Kwinter talks to Canadian Lawyer about how the firm’s expertise generates large awards, even in the most challenging cases
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SINGER KWINTER PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS focuses on severely injured clients, and as a result many of the cases the firm takes on involve chronic pain stemming from both objective injuries and soft-tissue injuries. These cases, especially concerning the latter, are particularly challenging because they’re highly reliant on the claimant, says Alfred Kwinter, founding partner of Singer Kwinter.
“The biggest threat to an insurance company is a likeable, honest plaintiff,” Kwinter says. "Insurance companies don’t try the case — they try the person.”
Whether it's due to “a car accident, medical malpractice or dangerous premises, because of the nature of our practice most of our clients suffer from chronic pain, and it can be
Since 1974, Singer Kwinter has relentlessly pursued justice for those who have sustained serious personal injuries and major insurance losses. The firm’s tenacity, thoroughness and thoughtful strategies have built a strong reputation with the courts, among insurers and within the profession as a leader in personal injury and insurance law.
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Other notable cases
$2.5 million
“There are three key points to every chronic pain case. The first is credibility, the second is credibility, and the third is credibility”
Alfred Kwinter,
Singer Kwinter
extremely debilitating,” says Shane Katz, a lawyer at the firm. But because chronic pain occurs when the injured person is past the normal healing period, there is often not much objective evidence to rely on. If the insurance company can call a plaintiff’s credibility into question, this goes a long way in defeating their claim.
While most clients are sincere, any blemish to their credibility — which could be inferred from social media posts of them engaging in activities they say they can’t do, for example — can jeopardize their case. Consistency in reporting to doctors, what the injured party tells people about their life, and how they actually live day-to-day are important aspects of these claims.
“There are three key points to every chronic pain case,” Kwinter says. “The first is credibility, the second is credibility, and the third is credibility.”
The invisible-injury stigma
Whether X-rays reveal that a broken bone has healed completely or the client initially suffered a soft-tissue injury, there is always a risk that the invisible-injury stigma will be applied. Historically, judges looked at chronic pain, especially from soft-tissue injuries, as being less worthy claims, but that changed following a 2003 Supreme Court of Canada decision. In Nova Scotia (Workers' Compensation Board) v. Martin; Nova Scotia (Workers' Compensation Board) v. Laseur, the SCC acknowledged chronic pain as a real and often-debilitating condition and stated that damages should properly reflect the severe impact it has on people’s lives. The decision changed the way the industry views these types of claims, Katz says,
although "you still face stigma from some insurance companies and adjusters.”
Success in these cases takes a high level of legal skill, and Singer Kwinter’s expertise is proven to generate large damage awards, even in the most challenging cases. In fact, the firm holds the record for the highest award in Canada for a chronic pain case stemming from a soft-tissue injury.
“The firm doesn’t promote resolving files quickly if it’s not in the best interest of the client, and we aren’t afraid to go to trial,” Katz says. “We’re extremely talented lawyers that fight as hard as possible for our clients.”
Degennaro v. Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital
In 1999, Diane Degennaro was at the hospital with her sick toddler when the bed she was given to sleep in collapsed beneath her. She landed heavily on her tail bone, and despite many years and various treatments, Degennaro suffered serious chronic pain that upended her life. She eventually decided to sue the hospital, and “without an injury you could see on an MRI, CAT scan or X-ray, the case relied on the plaintiff’s complaints of pain and came right down to her credibility before the court,” Kwinter, who represented Degennaro in the proceedings, says.
Work-related accidents or mishaps
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50% of those living with chronic pain have been suffering for over 10 years
2/3 of those living with chronic pain report it is moderate (52%) to severe (14%)
7.63 million or 1 in 4 Canadians over the age of 15 live with chronic pain
Despite three pretrials in which the presiding judges suggested much higher awards — two before the trial started and one during the trial, when Kwinter recognized it was going well for his client — the insurance company wouldn’t budge from the initial offer.
“We tried to settle for much less than the ultimate award, but the insurance company dug in its heels,” says Kwinter. “Somebody at that company was stuck on that number, but we knew it was worth a lot more.”
Kwinter finished the trial, and his instinct was correct — the judgment came out for $3.5 million. On appeal, the court trimmed down the future care cost award, but the remaining amount was still by far the highest in the country.
“I’ve done nothing but personal injury for four decades, and I have the scars and the awards to prove it,” Kwinter says. “I’ve had my share of battles, a number of which I’ve won and some I’ve lost, and I learned how to evaluate cases. While I’m not always right, I have a good sense of the type of plaintiff that should go to trial versus the ones who should settle.”
“The firm doesn’t promote resolving files quickly if it’s not in the best interest of the client, and we aren’t afraid to go to trial. We’re extremely talented lawyers that fight as hard as possible for our clients”
Shane Katz,
Singer Kwinter
Despite the importance of a believable client, there is still much to be said for the legal expertise the client has in their corner. In Kwinter’s opinion, what sets his firm apart is the experience and tenacity the dedicated team brings to every case it takes on.
The firm’s reputation also precedes it. Its lawyers have gone to trial enough times, and most importantly have been successful enough times, that insurance companies recognize who they are and the accolades they have. The firm has set record award amounts in a number of areas, including in Degennaro, and also changed the law of trip and fall in Ontario in Kamin v. Kawartha Dairy Ltd. And the courts trust them, Kwinter adds.
The Singer Kwinter difference
Ultimately, it comes down to experience, reputation and results, and that combination is what carried Singer Kwinter to — and keeps it at — the forefront of the personal injury bar.
"When you look at our track record, how many other firms can lay claim to similar accomplishments?” Kwinter asks. “Through our hard work we’ve made significant changes in people’s lives and in the law.”
Chronic pain in Canada
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$100,000
Clarke v. Andrew
Verdict in motor vehicle accident trial
$1.4 million
$350,000
$38.3–$40.4 billion was the total direct and indirect cost of chronic pain on the economy in 2019
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$2.5 million
Other notable cases
“The firm doesn’t promote resolving files quickly if it’s not in the best interest of the client, and we aren’t afraid to go to trial. We’re extremely talented lawyers that fight as hard as possible for our clients”
Shane Katz,
Singer Kwinter
“There are three key points to every chronic pain case. The first is credibility, the second is credibility, and the third is credibility”
Alfred Kwinter,
Singer Kwinter
2/3 of those living with chronic pain report it is moderate (52%)
to severe (14%)
50% of those living with chronic pain have been suffering for over 10 years
$38.3–$40.4 billion was the total direct and indirect cost of chronic pain on the economy in 2019
7.63 million or 1 in 4 Canadians over the age of 15 live with chronic pain
Chronic pain in Canada