Chronic back pain after accident...

The case is:


The taxi #1 hit taxi #2 (ran a light) that cause taxi #2 to rammed into my friend who was with friends. The railing got knocked off the curb and hit my friend on the leg slightly. They were brought to the hospital and discharged with minor injuries. But ever since the accident my friend has been experiencing serious chronic back and leg (the leg that got injured) pains. Plus he works in F&B business which requires him to stand for hours and lift heavy stuff. And this makes his pain worse. The police just sent him a letter saying he can proceed a civil claim with the legal aid. Is this worth going thru all that trouble to claim compensation? What are the proceedures?

well, it depends how bad his pain/injuries are. If he is working and able to perforn his job duties, it's probably not worth it. He could sue under a civil claim, but if he's had no time off work since the accident, he may not end up with much. He will get medical expenses reimbursed.


If he wants to sue, he should go see a lawyer, who will then send him to a medical specialist in order to get a medical report. If he can't get legal aid, this report will have to be paid by him first and will cost around 10K.


So it's really up to him. Also, when did the accident happen? If it was recently, you have to expect to feel aches and pains before the body heals itself. I presume nothing was broken.

My friend has seen a western trained pain management specialist in central. He had a severe sciatica and got much better after an epidural steroid injection. Might be worth checking it out. Think he was with the group asia medical specialists.

[UPDATE] Please note that fee quotes stated in historic postings may be out-of-date.


It is certainly worthwhile to investigate fully the prognosis and culpabilities arising from your friend’s injury. Lawyers can be contacted through Legal Aid to determine whether they can generally handle the matter for your friend.


To be qualified for legal aid, an applicant has to pass 2 tests, namely the merits test and the means test. The Legal Aid Department will assess whether your friend has reasonable grounds for his case and whether his financial resources exceed the eligibility limit. You can make use of the means test calculator on the “Electronic Services” LAD’s website http://www.lad.gov.hk to find out whether your friend is likely to quality for legal aid on means.


Applications for legal aid can be submitted in person or online by filling in a questionnaire and providing the required financial information of the applicant (e.g. bank statements, salary slips).


More Information for applying legal aid in civil cases can be located at http://www.lad.gov.hk/pdf/leaflet(e1).pdf.


Should your friend wish to be privately represented, he can arrange an interview with a local solicitor.


Weir & Associates

Solicitors & Notaries

16th Floor Tak Shing House

Theatre Lane

20 Des Voeux Road Central

Central

Hong Kong

Tel : 2526-1767

Fax : 2868-3568

email : WeirLaw@weirandassociates.com

www.weirandassociates.com