After a very long and hard-fought legal action, and a jury trial that lasted approximately two months, we are extremely pleased to be able to report a victory for our client who was assaulted by bouncers while attending a downtown Vancouver nightclub. Our client was a student and an elite athlete was picked up and tossed on his head by aggressive bouncers. Witnesses said the night club bouncers overreacted to a minor incident instigated by an intoxicated passerby. Our client was not involved in the incident was seriously injured.
The bouncers denied the assault and attempted to suggest that the injuries occurred as a result of a simple trip and fall. However, video surveillance and completed incident reports that would have captured the incident were ‘mysteriously’ missing. No sensible explanation for the missing evidence was ever provided by the nightclub staff.
As juries do not give reasons for their decisions in Canada, we do not know exactly why they decided in the way they did, however, we believe the eye witness evidence and expert evidence was strong and convincing. With the assistance of an expert biomechanical engineer and an expert neuroradiologist, we were able to show that the brain injury our client sustained could not have been caused by a simple trip and fall.
It is often difficult to prove that injuries that arise from incidents in bars or night clubs arise from the negligence of the bar or nightclub, where there is generally insurance to pay for the damages. The lawyers for the bar or nightclub will always try to argue that the victim and any witnesses were drunk and should not be believed. However, in certain cases, we can prove otherwise. In this case, our client was awarded approximately 3.5 million dollars.
