Toronto Bouncer Assault Lawyers

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers say that a doorman may be the “God of the red velvet rope line … but he isn’t above the law.” In fact, bouncers in Ontario are governed by the Private Security and Investigative Services Act (2005) and must take 40 hours of approved training, pass a test, and have annual criminal record checks. But not all bouncers follow the rules. That’s where we come in.

Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers, note that a bouncer’s job description includes:

  • Controlling the crowd
  • Food poisoning
  • Checking ID for age
  • Defending other patrons from harm

They also may ask a troublemaker to leave and remove them using reasonable force if they refuse. Nowhere is it written that a bouncer can go on a power trip and beat you up, choke, kick, or break your nose or jaw, or cause you harm in some other way.

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Call or email us if you believe you are the victim
of a bouncer assault.

(905) 910-1440

Why you should work with our Toronto
bouncer assault lawyers

Why you should work with our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers

Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers, explain that when a bouncer has injured you, what follows legally can be a criminal and/or a civil court matter. So, that means you can pursue a criminal charge and have the police and Crown prosecutor handle it. You can sue civilly for your damages. Or – you can do both.
Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers handle the personal injury side of things. While you could try and go it alone – without a personal injury lawyer to represent you – it’s important to involve our team because we understand how the law works. For example, did you know that even if a criminal case doesn’t end in a conviction, you can still file a civil claim for damages.

That’s right. A personal injury claim can still proceed: the burden of proof, a.k.a. the evidence you must have, is a much lower threshold in civil court – beyond a balance of probabilities.

The Toronto bouncer assault lawyers of Verkhovets Law would sue the bouncer personally in an intentional tort, which claims damages that arise from deliberate acts intended to harm. But since these cases are difficult to prove and often the bouncer can’t cover personally the compensation you’re owed, a lawsuit could also be filed against the establishment, and their insurance company, based on negligence.

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers know that in Ontario, venues that employ bouncers operate under the Occupier’s Liability Act which bars, clubs, and restaurants negligent if they don’t ensure their guests are reasonably safe – ironically a big reason why they hire a doorman in the first place. A negligence claim would allege if a patron were injured in a bouncer assault on their property, the owner/occupier could be held liable.

Toronto bouncer assault lawyers explain that even if the defence argues that the bouncer’s actions arose from trying to uphold their obligation under the Act by removing a patron who they thought was a danger, it doesn’t mean the bouncer can use excessive force and hurt someone in the process.

Bouncer Assault
Commercial properties have a duty to keep you safe.
Call or email today if a bouncer has assaulted you.
Commercial properties have a duty to keep you safe. Call or email today if a bouncer has assaulted you.

  Contact Us

Toronto bouncer assault lawyers outline
common injuries that happen

Toronto bouncer assault lawyers outline common injuries that happen

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers believe the last thing that should happen after a great time out with friends is to wind up being hurt at the hand of a bouncer. But it can and does happen. The range of possible injuries that can arise from a bouncer assault is extremely wide – from a minor scrape to a catastrophic injury, including amputation, blindness, mental disability, paralyses, traumatic brain injury, and impairment of more than half of your body. And rarely, death.
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Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers know there are common injuries
that people suffer in a bouncer assault. Here is a list of some of them:

Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers know there are common injuries that people suffer in a bouncer assault. Here is a list of some of them:

  • Cuts
  • Dislocations
  • Fractured jaw
  • Mental trauma
  • Neck injuries (choking)
  • Paralyses
  • PTSD
  • Stab wound
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Taser injuries

Legal terms explained by our Toronto
bouncer assault lawyers

Legal terms explained by our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers

Negligence-based liability claim – Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers, note this is another way of saying personal injury lawsuit. In a bouncer assault case, a claim alleges you were hurt because the nightclub’s negligence caused or contributed to your injury. Negligence claims must show a duty of care breach, causation, and damages, and if proven, the careless party is held liable for the harm. One of the most common areas of tort law, negligence is defined under the Negligence Act.

Causation: Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers know that in a lawsuit arising from a bouncer assault, establishing causation is vital. Even though a bouncer can be found liable, often they can’t afford the damages. So, the nightclub is also sued, and one of the keys is a finding of negligence by showing they had a duty of reasonable care and breached it. Flowing from that is causation; prove the nightclub’s negligence caused the injury.

Be warned: once causation is established, it could support your case or relieve the nightclub of liability if it’s shown their actions didn’t contribute to the harm.

Reasonable force – The Toronto bouncer assault lawyers at Verkhovets Law describe reasonable force as legal force. A bouncer can’t just haul off and punch you to get you to leave a bar, nor can they use more force than is necessary and put you in a headlock for good measure. He doesn’t have the right to use force more freely than anyone else. So, if a bouncer is trying to remove a patron, he can’t strike first – he’s supposed to ask you to leave. If the patron hits him, he can use the same level of force: if you kick him first, he can’t break a chair over your head. But it does open the door for him to use what is considered a reasonable level of force to respond.

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers explain
what causes bouncer assaults

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers explain what causes bouncer assaults

Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers, know all about it: getting inside a nightclub depends on the bouncer working the door seeing you as one of the “cool people.” Or at least worthy of entering the inner sanctum to add value to the scene. It’s a power dynamic that can put the prospective patron at an immediate psychological disadvantage and at risk of injuries if an argument escalates to assault, possibly due to the negligence of the bouncer’s boss hiring a volatile bouncer.

Under the principle of vicarious liability – if the bouncer has an assaultive history yet works there, the employer might be found liable.

But while Toronto bouncer assault lawyers say the bouncer isn’t by law supposed to let his power turn physical – they aren’t actually allowed to just go off and use whatever force they want – sadly, some of them believe they can get away with it. That thinking is typically at the root of why most some bouncer assault injuries can occur.

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers list the most common causes of bouncer assault injuries:

  • Bouncer with anger issues and history of a short fuse and a bad temper
  • Choking
  • Grabbing
  • Head butting
  • Kicking
  • Punching
  • Shoving into a sharp or blunt object
  • Pushed down a stairwell
  • Too much force, i.e., when breaking up a fight
  • Using a weapon: stick, Taser
  • Wrong place at the wrong time in the way of a ramped-up bouncer

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers

also handle these types of claims:

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers also handle these types of claims:

   Car accidents

   Bicycle accidents

   Pedestrian accidents

And our Toronto bouncer assault

lawyers will help you with these types

of personal injuries:

And our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers will help you with these types of personal injuries:

   Brain injuries

   Broken bones

   Concussions

   Long-term disability claims

   Internal injuries

   Soft tissue injuries

   Spinal cord injuries

   Whiplash

Don’t be a victim of bouncer assault.
Call or email our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers today.

  Contact Us

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers outline
bouncer assault claims

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers outline bouncer assault claims

Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers, note that under the province’s Limitations Act (2002) your bouncer assault claim must be initiated within two years. So, it’s important to have legal assistance as soon as possible to handle your case.

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers will assess your injuries to determine what losses you have experienced and how much compensation you deserve. We will also consider which at-fault parties will be named – the bouncer, venue owner, event organizer, or a third-party employer.

Toronto bouncer assault lawyers say that the case Naras v. Seemore Entertainment Ltd. is instructive for these types of matters. Three bouncers and the owner of a nightclub in B.C. were found liable for the traumatic brain injury of an innocent student. The victim was picked up and tossed on his head by the bouncers, who were reacting to a drunken passerby. The victim was merely a bystander. The bouncers claimed the injury was the result of a trip and fall, which the jury rejected.

Some of the most common losses seen in these types of cases are:

  • Emotional distress
  • Disfigurement
  • Housekeeping costs
  • Inconvenience
  • Lost income – present and future
  • Loss of enjoyment of life
  • Loss of quality of life
  • Loss of consortium
  • Medical expenses – present and future
  • Nursing care
  • Pain and suffering for current and future physical and emotional injuries
  • Psychological/PTSD
  • Prescription medication costs, including eye glasses, prostheses
  • Sexual disfunction
  • Travel costs for appointments
The Toronto bouncer assault lawyers of Verkhovets Law will also assist in applying for compensation from the Victim Quick Response Program (VQRP) for victims of violent crime, who don’t have insurance or access to a publicly funded program, to have short-term financial relief.
In addition, if the bouncer assault resulted in a death, our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers have the experience to initiate a wrongful death claim on behalf of loved ones.

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers care
about getting what you are owed

Our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers care about getting what you are owed

Verkhovets Law, Toronto bouncer assault lawyers, know that being assaulted by a bouncer is a traumatic experience, both physically and emotionally. Sometimes a bouncer goes so far over the edge with excessive force, a victim who suffers harm can be granted punitive damages on top of the compensation award. This award is not meant to compensate, but is in fact, a way for the courts to punish someone whose behaviour was intentional or extremely negligent, as outlined in R. v. Riley (2010). Though these awards are rare, our lawyers are here to help if a bouncer who inflicts your injuries was exceptionally reckless and should be punished.
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Contact our Toronto bouncer assault lawyers today

The Toronto bouncer assault lawyers of Verkhovets Law understand how devastating it is
to be beaten up by a bouncer for no good reason. Email or phone and we’ll start helping
you now.

The Toronto bouncer assault lawyers of Verkhovets Law understand how devastating it is to be beaten up by a bouncer for no good reason. Email or phone and we’ll start helping you now.

(905) 910-1440