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UBC Theses and Dissertations
Potential value: a challenge to the quantification of damages for loss of earning capacity for female and aboriginal plaintiffs Ghitter, Corinne Louise
Abstract
This thesis questions why young female and aboriginal plaintiffs consistently receive lower damage awards for loss of future earning capacity than young white male plaintiffs. I argue that due to the social construction of law, and specifically tort law, the dividing line between public and private law should be challenged. The effect of tort is partially "public" in nature due to the broad impact tort has on valuing the potential of individual plaintiffs. When damages for female and aboriginal plaintiffs are assessed on a reduced scale due to gender and race, a message is sent that the potential of these plaintiffs, and the potential of the groups to which they belong, is somehow less. Due to the "public" impacts of damages quantification, principles of equality derived from the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms should be considered in the quantification process. I argue further, that the current practice of damages quantification has been the result of the court's over-reliance on "formalist" notions of tort law which has insulated the area from the social context of law. In addition, I suggest that the acceptance by courts of economic evidence, which is often reflective of discriminatory norms in the labour market and our society generally, has had the effect of de-valuing certain members of Canadian society; in particular women and aboriginal plaintiffs. I demonstrate this analysis through an examination of cases dealing with young, catastrophically injured, female and aboriginal plaintiffs. Finally, I suggest that, though an imperfect solution, currently the only equitable method of quantifying damages for loss of future earning capacity is to adopt white male earning tables for all young plaintiffs with no demonstrated earning history.
Item Metadata
Title |
Potential value: a challenge to the quantification of damages for loss of earning capacity for female and aboriginal plaintiffs
|
Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
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Date Issued |
2000
|
Description |
This thesis questions why young female and aboriginal plaintiffs consistently
receive lower damage awards for loss of future earning capacity than young white male
plaintiffs. I argue that due to the social construction of law, and specifically tort law, the
dividing line between public and private law should be challenged. The effect of tort is
partially "public" in nature due to the broad impact tort has on valuing the potential of
individual plaintiffs. When damages for female and aboriginal plaintiffs are assessed on
a reduced scale due to gender and race, a message is sent that the potential of these
plaintiffs, and the potential of the groups to which they belong, is somehow less. Due to
the "public" impacts of damages quantification, principles of equality derived from the
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms should be considered in the quantification
process.
I argue further, that the current practice of damages quantification has been the
result of the court's over-reliance on "formalist" notions of tort law which has insulated
the area from the social context of law. In addition, I suggest that the acceptance by
courts of economic evidence, which is often reflective of discriminatory norms in the
labour market and our society generally, has had the effect of de-valuing certain members
of Canadian society; in particular women and aboriginal plaintiffs. I demonstrate this
analysis through an examination of cases dealing with young, catastrophically injured,
female and aboriginal plaintiffs. Finally, I suggest that, though an imperfect solution,
currently the only equitable method of quantifying damages for loss of future earning
capacity is to adopt white male earning tables for all young plaintiffs with no
demonstrated earning history.
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Extent |
4835644 bytes
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Genre | |
Type | |
File Format |
application/pdf
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Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2009-07-09
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0077522
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URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
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Graduation Date |
2000-05
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Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
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Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.