Author: John McKiggan

Tingling in Hands After a Car Accident

by John McKiggan

What Does it Mean?

Tingling in the hands is a neurological symptom generally associated with pressure on your nerves. For example, if you cross your legs too long, when you uncross them you may get a numb, tingling, pins and needles sensation. Or when you sleep on your arm and you feel tingling when you move it. 

These are the more common instances of tingling in the hands that people will experience regularly over the course of their lives. However, tingling in the hands can also be caused by trauma and injury as a result of nerve damage. This can be an indication of more serious damage to the nerves rather than merely pressure.

Continue reading →

Posted in: Car Accidents

Is the Car Making a Left-Hand Turn Always at Fault?

by John McKiggan

The short answer is no. The long answer is that generally speaking left-turning vehicles must yield the right of way to oncoming vehicles. However, that doesn’t mean they are automatically at fault and every accident must be examined on it’s own facts and a determination made as to who “caused” the collision.

There is a common misunderstanding that if you were making a left turn you are automatically at fault for the accident.  However, liability will depend on the right of way, the speed of the vehicles, the duties of each driver, and what a reasonable and prudent driver would have done in the same situation.

The Left-Hand Turn Rules in Nova Scotia

Continue reading →

Posted in: Car Accidents

Emotional Distress Damages in Personal Injury Cases

by John McKiggan

In law, damages “. . . are
meant to put an injured person in as good a position as he or she would have
been in had those injuries never occurred”. Personal injury lawsuits
following an accident usually include compensation for what lawyers refer to as
“non-pecuniary damages” and what most people call “pain and suffering”.

In cases where someone has suffered
a physical injury, like a broken leg, it is easier to show the nature of the
injury and the harm it has caused. But what about where the primary injury is
related to the psychological distress of the traumatic accident?

Damages for emotional distress can
be difficult to determine and will greatly depend on the nature of your
injuries and the specifics of your case.

Continue reading →

Posted in: Personal Injury

Motor Vehicle Collisions a Leading Cause of Serious Injuries in Nova Scotia

by John McKiggan

In
the early hours of May 26, 2019, a car struck a culvert that left two Nova
Scotia men seriously injured. RCMP police quickly alleged that the driver was
showing signs of alcohol impairment. The passenger of the vehicle was
transported by LifeFlight to Halifax for further medical treatment.

This
unfortunate accident is just one of hundreds of motor vehicle collisions that
happen across Nova Scotia every day.

How Much Are My Injuries Worth?

Continue reading →

Posted in: Car Accidents

Brain Stem Injuries

by John McKiggan

By John McKiggan Q.C.

One of the huge challenges in representing survivors of brain injury is providing convincing evidence of the debilitating nature of the injury. This is even truer in cases where the brain injury doesn’t cause any obvious physical disability. It can be easy to miss the signs of brain injury if you don’t know what to look for.

A short story

Continue reading →

Posted in: Brain Injury

Vehophobia After a Car Accident

by John McKiggan

Do you
experience fear of driving or get anxious about getting behind the wheel of
your vehicle? Do you have paralysing thoughts of being responsible for an
accident that may cause others injury or loss of life?

An Accident Caused Vehophobia

It was Saturday
morning and “Jim”, had stopped at a stop sign. He was a busy man, but Jim had promised
he would always attend his 6-year-old son’s soccer games. His son sat in the
back seat with a soccer ball in his lap.

Continue reading →

Posted in: Car Accidents

Five Tips for Negotiating the Best Personal Injury Settlement Possible

by John McKiggan

If you have been hurt in a car collision or any type of accident that resulted in injuries requiring medical treatment, you probably have a lot of questions pertaining to your potential personal injury claim’s inevitable settlement negotiations. Any injured person will want to obtain the very best settlement possible to help support their rehabilitation process, but accident victims must always consider their full settlement value throughout the entirety of the settlement process.

There are countless instances in which injuries prevent an accident victim from being able to work, which can make the overall physical pain of the injuries be exacerbated by the stress of wondering how bills and ubiquitous expenses will be paid.

At McKiggan Hebert, we want the process of filing a personal injury claim to be as stress-free as possible for all of our clients. We believe that innocent victims of serious accidents should be fully compensated for their injuries and all subsequent damages, and through our legal advice and strategies, we’ll be more than capable of successfully guiding your or your loved one past an insurance company’s first offer to a fair settlement agreement that fully reimburses you for your medical expenses, as well as all incurred economic and non-economic damages. 

Continue reading →

Posted in: Personal Injury

Living with a Brain Injury: What Families and Caregivers Need to Know

by John McKiggan

While the road forward may be challenging, it is important for families and caregivers to know what to expect when it comes to living with a brain injury. Returning home after sustaining a brain injury—no matter how severe—can be a complex and emotional experience. For many, returning home is a sign of triumph after rehabilitation, and since home is a place of safety and security, is where they find their old selves once again.

Brain damage can result in confusion, memory loss, poor
organizational skills, disinhibition and poor reasoning skills and judgment.  Individuals who have been affected by a
traumatic brain injury may appear to have changed dramatically. It is important
that friends, family members and caregivers understand that the individual does
not want to feel or act differently than they did before the injury.

As brain injury lawyers, McKiggan Hebert has represented hundreds of survivors and helped their families understand the impact that a traumatic brain injury can have. With this in mind, we have compiled a basic list of things that families and caregivers should know when a brain injury survivor returns home, prepares to return to work and wishes to return to a normal life.

Continue reading →

Posted in: Brain Injury

Understanding Whiplash in Nova Scotia Car Accidents

by John McKiggan

No matter how severe a car accident may seem in the initial follow-up moments, suffering from whiplash and whiplash associated disorders (WAD) can quickly escalate what appears at first to be a minor incident into a serious medical emergency. 

“Whiplash” is the common term for an injury resulting from an abrupt back-and-forth flexing of the neck. This type of neck pain can vary tremendously individually, but in some severe cases the symptoms of whiplash can include things like harsh back pain, neck sprains, muscle spasms, shoulder pain, concussions, neck stiffness, chronic pain and much more.

These very painful and disruptive symptoms can greatly affect a car accident or sports injury victim’s quality of life, overall ability to provide an income for one’s self and family, and can even lead to emotional injuries like depression and social isolation in some extreme cases. No one should ever have to live with this kind of pain and suffering that can result from a whiplash injury — especially when the injury is caused directly by someone else’s negligent actions.

Continue reading →

Posted in: Car Accidents, Concussions, Distracted Driving, Head Injuries, Personal Injury, Uncategorized