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Ontario Crash Victim Receives Highest Damage Award in Canadian Legal History

A Beeton, Ontario woman has received the highest ever damage award in Canada for injuries suffered in a car accident, in a decision by Ontario's Superior Court of Justice.

A Beeton, Ontario woman has received the highest ever damage award in Canada for injuries suffered in a car accident, in a decision by Ontario's Superior Court of Justice.

Katherine-Paige MacNeil, who was 15 when the accident occurred on August 2, 2002, was awarded more than $18.4 million by Justice Peter Howden.

MacNeil, now 22, suffered a severe brain injury after the car in which she was a back seat passenger ran a stop sign at the end of a concession road north of Toronto and flew across Highway 89, landing in a ditch.

MacNeil's lawyer, John McLeish of McLeish Orlando in Toronto, fought the case for the MacNeil family. "This judgment will safeguard Katherine-Paige's future and ensure that she has the highest quality of life possible." says McLeish.

The court also awarded record amounts to Katherine-Paige's parents and brother, who have provided around the clock support to Katherine-Paige following the collision.

"The decision shows that our courts are now willing to give greater recognition to parents who shoulder the burden of care-giving," says McLeish.

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