The Champions of IRP Defence
When Immediate Roadside Prohibitions came out, one thing we did to ensure we were doing the best job possible was we requested copies of every successful decision each month. We wrote to the BC Government for disclosure of copies of all of the successful decisions.
Most IRPs that are lifted on review are cases where Acumen Law was the firm handling the case.
The reason we wanted copies of the decisions was because we wanted to see if anyone else was coming up with creative arguments and of course we wanted the decisions for precedent value. As we reviewed the disclosure there was one very obvious thing: we were winning in more IRP reviews than the other BC law offices each month. We were doing a good job for our clients and few law offices even came close to our number of successes.
The Champions of IRP Defence
Because we appeal more IRPs than anyone else, we have an opportunity to take a long-term approach. We pick selective holes that we see in the IRP scheme and we poke at them until we open them up. We dig for more information because we know what information to dig for. We spot macro trends and micro issues that you simply would never imagine. And in the end our clients are the winners.
We succeeded in more IRP review hearings than all other BC law offices and individuals COMBINED. To put that into perspective, there are more than 11,000 lawyers in BC.
A winning trend
In the first few months of 2015, we noticed our success numbers growing significantly. In most months we would succeed in double or triple the next most successful law office that handles IRPs. By May 2015, we noticed that we had succeeded in roughly ten times the next most successful IRP law office.
Our numbers were going up. The overall number of wins was going up. But the numbers for other law firms were stagnant and so the only reason that the overall success rate was going up was because we were succeeding in so many IRP appeals.
Blowing through the roof
In June 2015 the trend was fixed in stone. It became clear that we were the absolute champions of IRP defence having won over 70 IRPs in a single month.
We succeeded in more IRP review hearings than all other BC law offices and self-represented individuals COMBINED. To put that into perspective, there are more than 11,000 lawyers in BC.
Our dramatic win rate boosted the win rate in the province. Of all of the people who disputed their IRP, 47% succeeded in the review. Take us out of the equation and the overall win rate for the province drops to around 20%.
Can we sustain the trend?
It seems fairly likely that we will remain the Champions of IRP Defence for the foreseeable future. Several years of data shows that each month we succeed in more IRP review hearings in our office than any other law office in BC.
Our methods are evolving and changing. We have experience that no one else has and a collection of material that is simply staggering. We’re always working on new angles and identifying new problems.
The statistics for July and August confirm the trend that emerged at the start of the year: Most IRPs that are lifted on review are cases where Acumen Law was the firm handling the case.
It will be interesting to see whether the trend will continue. In August, as in the months before, we succeeded in more than ten times as many IRP appeals as our next closest competitor.
On thing is certain: we want to keep succeeding for our clients. For us it’s all about justice. At the same time, we’re glad that in the five years since this law was introduced, we are the champions of IRP defence.
The edge and the stats
In the beginning, getting copies of all of the successful decisions each month gave us an edge that we leveraged into something big to the benefit of our clients. The precedent value of those early decisions was fantastic for us. It was so fantastic that RoadSafetyBC stopped putting any discernible reasons into the decisions when they revoke the prohibition. They didn’t want to be tied to the logic of previous decisions. Although our disclosure requests are published on the BC Government’s open government website, other lawyers didn’t seem to pick up on our strategy.
Although RoadSafetyBC stopped explaining reasons in the decisions, we kept obtaining them because we wanted to be able to spot trends and determine whether we were doing all that we can for our clients.
It’s clear that we’re doing a good job.
If you or a loved one has an IRP, call us ASAP.