McMillan v Trad
[2026] QSC 108 · McCafferty J
Grant McMillan was driving on the Pacific Highway at Springwood in August 2017 when another car ran into the back of his vehicle. He was 42 at the time and already suffered chronic back pain from a similar rear-end crash back in 2002. He sued the driver and the driver's insurer, claiming the 2017 crash had badly injured his whole spine and worsened his long-standing pain condition. Liability for the crash was admitted, so the dispute was about how badly he was actually hurt. The plaintiff represented himself and did not call any specialist to support his claims. This lack of case planning was much to the plaintiff's detriment. The court referred to the long-standing principle in Todorovic v Waller (1981) 150 CLR 402, i.e. that the plaintiff bears the burden of proving the injury or loss for which he seeks damages. And, on the judge's assessment of the evidence (or lack thereof), he was not persuaded that the plaintiff suffered a whole person injury. Instead, the judge found he had only suffered a minor temporary aggravation of his neck and lower back pain lasting about 14 months, after which his condition was the same chronic pain he had endured for years. The judge also refused his claim for care provided by his wife, finding the evidence did not meet the legal thresholds. He was awarded a total of $8,002.75.
It is very likely that due to the low amount of damages awarded a subsequent adverse costs order may follow (depending on the offers made prior to trial). An adverse cost order would erode the plaintiff's damages entirely, and could cause the him to actually owe money to the insurer. This case is yet another example of why injured plaintiffs should seek legal advice, and never go it alone in an arena that they are unfamiliar with.
Incident & injury
Rear-end motor vehicle collision; the plaintiff's car was struck from behind
- Body regions
- Cervical spine, Lumbar spine
- Diagnoses
- Exacerbation of pre-existing cervical spine pain, Exacerbation of pre-existing lumbar spine pain, Minor whiplash-type aggravation injury
- Incident date
- 1 August 2017
- Location
- Pacific Highway, Springwood
Quick facts
- Date of judgment
- 8 June 2026
- Claim type
- MAIA
- Proceeding
- Damages assessment
- Plaintiff outcome
- Partial
- Plaintiff age at injury
- 42
- Occupation
- Unemployed
- Liability
- Admitted
- ISV assessed
- 5 uplift applied · Item 89 (minor cervical spine injury)
- Total damages
- $8,003
Outcome
Judgment for the plaintiff against the joint defendants in the sum of $8,002.75. The court found the plaintiff suffered only a minor exacerbation of his cervical and lumbar spine lasting 14 months, not the whole-spine injury or severe aggravation claimed, and rejected the gratuitous care claim for failing the s 59 thresholds.
Defendants (2)
Under the Motor Accident Insurance Act 1994 (Qld), the CTP insurer (AAI Limited) is the actual payer of the judgment. The insured driver is named on the judgment but is not personally liable to satisfy it — the CTP policy responds.
1 Sharbel Trad
Driver/Tortfeasor
- Judgment against this defendant
- $8,003
Heads of damage
| General damages | $7,400 |
|---|---|
| Past care (Griffiths v Kerkemeyer) | $0 |
| Future care | $0 |
| Past special damages (plaintiff) | $500 |
| Interest on past special damages | $103 |
| Future special damages | $0 |
| Subtotal before refunds | $8,003 |
2 AAI Limited
CTP Insurer
- Judgment against this defendant
- $8,003
Heads of damage
| General damages | $7,400 |
|---|---|
| Past care (Griffiths v Kerkemeyer) | $0 |
| Future care | $0 |
| Past special damages (plaintiff) | $500 |
| Interest on past special damages | $103 |
| Future special damages | $0 |
| Subtotal before refunds | $8,003 |
Key issues
McMillan v Trad [2026] QSC 108
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