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  MIG Update – December 15, 2025

A Fundamental Filing Error Proves Fatal

This week’s MIG case highlights the major factor considered by the Tribunal being the Applicant’s failure to adhere to the Tribunal’s clear direction to file and specifically reference supporting evidence in their written hearing submissions, with references being incomplete and evidence not entered as formal Tabs. This decision serves as a stern warning regarding the necessity of procedural precision in LAT filings to successfully advance a claim.

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In Torres v. Economical Insurance Company (23-014963), Marilou Torres was involved in an accident on October 13, 2021 and sought entitlement to IRBs from October 20, 2021, to December 31, 2021 as well as four Treatment Plans for attendant care assessment and chiropractic services. This review only relates to the MIG.

Torres submitted that she should be removed from the MIG as she sustained serious accident-related impairments, including a disc bulge in her lower back as confirmed by a December 2021 MRI, a suspected partial thickness tear to her left shoulder, and a diagnosis of Bell’s Palsy.

Economical argued that the suspected partial thickness tear fell within the definition of a minor injury, and that Torres’ back impairments and pain pre-dated the accident. It further submitted that Torres had not led any evidence that the Bell’s Palsy diagnosis could be related to the accident. It relied on the IE report of Dr. Stewart, who found that Torres’ musculoskeletal injuries had fully resolved, and that she had full range of motion in her neck, back and limbs.

Economical also argued that Torres failed to direct the Tribunal to any supporting evidence for her submissions. While Torres’ submissions refer to various CNRs, hospital records and diagnostic imaging, this evidence was not included as appended Tabs to the submissions or in an evidence brief. Further, the footnotes identifying the evidence were incomplete and included question marks rather than Tab or page numbers..

In reply Torres stated that the incomplete references in the footnotes were an error by her representative and should not prejudice her claim. As well, Economical had been previously provided with all the referenced records which were included with the LAT application.

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The Tribunal found:

• Although Torres’ submissions made reference to various medical documents, these documents were not entered into evidence as Tabs, or specifically identified in footnotes, as ordered by the CCRO.
  
• “The Tribunal’s role is that of a neutral arbiter, not an advocate for any party. The Tribunal cannot presume to know which evidence or portion thereof, if any, that a party intends to rely on in advancing her case. The applicant has the onus of demonstrating that she has sustained impairments warranting removal from the MIG. Given that she has not specifically directed me to, or filed evidence in support of her claim, I find that she has not met her evidentiary burden to support her removal from the MIG.
• Partial tears have consistently been found to fall within the definition of a “minor injury”. In this case,Torres had not established that the diagnostic imaging dated December 2021 revealed accident-related impairments, rather than degenerative changes.
  
• Economical led evidence that Torres had similarly reported low back pain pre-accident. There was no evidence that she had been diagnosed with chronic pain as a result of the accident. Rather, at the time of Dr. Stewart’s GP IE in May 2023, Torres had presented with full range of motion in the neck, back and shoulders, and Dr. Stewart had found no accident-related physical impairments.

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