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Hitchhiker
Rear Admiral
Joined: 11 Aug 2004
Posts: 3514
Location: Ontario, Canada
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 Sun Dec 04, 2005 1:17 am New Alberta law will permit some lawsuits against mothers |
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| CBC wrote: | New Alberta law will permit some lawsuits against mothers
Last Updated Sat, 03 Dec 2005 16:15:01 EST
CBC News
Alberta has become the first province in Canada to enact legislation allowing children to sue their mothers for injuries suffered in the womb. But the law applies only to damage suffered in car accidents.
Lisa Rewega was pregnant when she was in a car accident five years ago while on her way to church. "I just felt so great, everything was perfect and I just never made it there. I hit black ice. I was five months pregnant."
Rewega spent eight months in hospital. Her daughter Brooklyn was born severely brain-damaged and blind, with cerebral palsy and epilepsy. She needs expensive, round-the-clock care.
In a ruling six years ago, the Supreme Court of Canada said a child can't sue its mother for damages suffered in the womb. But the ruling also left a small and very narrow loophole, saying provinces could allow a child to sue its mother, but only in the case of a car accident.
Alberta is now the first province to allow this.
"Had the father been driving, the suit could have been against the father," said Shannon Haggerty of the Alberta Justice Department. "But since the mother was at fault in that case, there was no ability for the child to go after the mother. So this will allow for the mother to also be part of that scope."
Lawyers for Brooklyn have now filed suit against her mother for damages suffered in the womb. If she wins, the Rewega's insurance company will have to pick up the cost of Brooklyn's care.
Jim Rivait, spokesperson for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, says the new law is going to have an impact on insurance premiums right across the country.
"Any time you have an increase in claim costs, it has to flow through to what policy holders pay for auto insurance premiums," said Rivait.
Other are worried the legislation could open the door to infringement of women's right, such as "suing a woman for causing brain damage in her fetus because she drank or smoked during her pregnancy," said Joyce Arthur of the Abortion Rights Coaltion. "And of course the anti-abortion groups could exploit the law as well."
Alberta says the law applies only to unborn children injured in car accidents and cannot be expanded.
Copyright �2005 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation - All Rights Reserved |
Source
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Puck
The Texan
Joined: 05 Jan 2004
Posts: 5596
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 1:22 am |
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That's just weird in my opinion. I wouldn't sue my mother for anything. Especially for getting in a car wreck? Wtf?
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Starbuck
faster...
Joined: 19 Feb 2003
Posts: 8715
Location: between chaos and melody
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 7:12 am |
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Wow....
"Mommy, when you were pregnant with me you were hit by a drunk driver as you were changing lanes, so now I'm going to sue you."......?
There's something just not right about this.....
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Brightstar82
Rear Admiral
Joined: 08 Apr 2005
Posts: 4394
Location: A Borg Cube....Where Else?
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 9:13 am |
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Thats kind of dumb. I mean alot of injuries to babies happen at birth which isnt the mothers fault. That new law suit is rediculas 
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Starbuck
faster...
Joined: 19 Feb 2003
Posts: 8715
Location: between chaos and melody
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 10:06 am |
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The law only permits law suit if the injury was due to a car accident.
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Hitchhiker
Rear Admiral
Joined: 11 Aug 2004
Posts: 3514
Location: Ontario, Canada
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 11:10 am |
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| Starbuck wrote: | | "Mommy, when you were pregnant with me you were hit by a drunk driver as you were changing lanes, so now I'm going to sue you."......? |
Perhaps one could sue over that, but one probably wouldn't win. 
I think that the most interesting part of the article is where, up until now, one could sue the father, but not the mother.
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Lord Borg
Fleet Admiral
Joined: 27 May 2003
Posts: 11214
Location: Vulcan Capital City, Vulcan
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 12:40 pm |
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She's being sued becuase she hit a patch of black ice? I dont drive, and i know how bad black ice is. Then again, perhaps the mother was driving fast. *shrugs* I dunno
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Arellia
The Quiet One
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 4425
Location: Dallas, TX
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 1:55 pm |
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Very... *interesting*. Weird, on the outside, but... if the mother did something deliberately harmful to her child, you'd have grounds to sue (in my mind). If it was negligence, drunk driving or something...you might be able to call it some form of child abuse. But when it comes to an accident? No.
-------signature-------
Not the doctor... yet
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Link, the Hero of Time
Vice Admiral
Joined: 15 Sep 2001
Posts: 5581
Location: Kokori Forest, Hyrule
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 2:21 pm |
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jeez, welcome to the world where anyone can sue anyone for anything.
A child can sue for things that happened while the mother was pregnant.... Right.
"Mommy, I'm suing you for when some stranger pushed you and you fell.
Daddy, I'm suing you for not helping mommy."
And LB, black ice is really bad. You cant distinguish it from the road and it's very dangerous.
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Starbuck
faster...
Joined: 19 Feb 2003
Posts: 8715
Location: between chaos and melody
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 5:27 pm |
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This is interesting, I mean, how could you sue your mother, she gave you life, she pays for you, she clothes you, she makes sure you have a roof over your head, and you sue her for getting into a car accident while she was pregnant with you.
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Sun Dec 04, 2005 5:47 pm |
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It's disgusting. America and Canada are both becoming sue-happy states.
-------signature-------
"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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IntrepidIsMe
Pimp Handed
Joined: 14 Jun 2002
Posts: 13057
Location: New York
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| Mon Dec 05, 2005 6:00 pm |
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I can understand if the mother was pregnant and was driving drunk, then maybe. But a simple car crash? Nah.
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"Nelly, I am Heathcliff! He's always, always in my mind: not as a pleasure, any more than I am always a pleasure to myself, but as my own being."
-Wuthering Heights
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magenta
Commander
Joined: 24 May 2005
Posts: 404
Location: AUSTRALIA
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| Tue Dec 06, 2005 8:16 am |
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:-?The world is going sue crazy!The lawyers are the ones pushing the 'stupid' lawsuits to line their own pockets with money.In Australia heaps of 'events' such as rodeos,amusment rides,go cart racing,jet ski boats are stopped due to rediculous rises in their insurance premiums.They simply could not afford to pay the amounts expected and run their event at a profit!
People sue for stupid things,and this is just another idiodic lawyer fuelled money grab!
There are some irresponsible people who when pregnant,do some stupid things some times.But what is sueing them going to accomlish?
An accident is an accident,no amount of money is going to reverse what happened! 
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