A Burnaby-based eye surgeon has been granted $6.4 million in damages due to injuries sustained in a car accident that occurred seven years ago. The decision was handed down by the B.C. Supreme Court last week.
On March 30, 2017, Femida Kherani’s vehicle, which was halted at a red light in Vancouver’s Kerrisdale neighborhood, was rear-ended by another car. This vehicle was owned by Max Da Silva and driven by Keith Rollins, according to the court ruling.
Kherani, 52, testified that the force of the collision caused her head to strike the headrest so violently that it broke. Rollins admitted in court that the sun had obstructed his vision, leading to his failure to see Kherani’s stationary vehicle.
Kherani, who operates an ophthalmic surgery clinic at 3994 Hastings St., Burnaby, pursued legal action against both Da Silva and Rollins. She claimed that the accident resulted in a concussion, persistent migraine headaches, and extensive pain affecting her neck, shoulder, back, hip, and knee. These injuries, she argued, had severely impacted her ability to perform her duties as an ophthalmic surgeon.
During the 17-day trial, Da Silva and Rollins acknowledged that Kherani was indeed injured and that these injuries affected her professional life. However, they contested the link between the crash and a shoulder surgery Kherani underwent six years later. The defendants’ experts argued that Kherani’s physically demanding career, pre-existing conditions, and high-level sports participation, including volleyball, were responsible for the shoulder injury necessitating surgery.
In contrast, Kherani’s witnesses, including her family and colleagues, testified that she had dramatically changed post-accident. Expert witnesses for Kherani supported the claim that the accident either directly caused or significantly exacerbated her shoulder injury.
Justice Gordon Weatherill of the B.C. Supreme Court deemed the testimonies of Kherani’s witnesses as reliable and credible, finding her to be a “genuine and honest” witness who did not exaggerate her symptoms but rather understated them.
In his ruling, Weatherill determined that the collision was responsible for Kherani’s shoulder injury and awarded her $6.4 million in damages. This sum included approximately $1.2 million for lost income due to a reduced workload and an estimated $4.8 million for potential future earnings. Additionally, Kherani was awarded $144,000 for pain and suffering, $240,000 for future care, and $45,000 in special damages.
Since Da Silva and Rollins failed to provide evidence regarding the accident itself, Weatherill ruled that Rollins was entirely at fault for the crash. Both Rollins and Da Silva were held liable for the damages awarded to Kherani.
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