A former financial analyst had his CPP disability benefits denied twice by Service Canada after a car accident left him unable to work. He appealed. On March 21, 2026, the Social Security Tribunal’s Appeal Division dismissed the government’s own appeal and confirmed his pension.
Aodhan P. Murphy, Managing Partner of the Mike Murphy Law Group, represented him at the General Division and again at the Appeal Division. The decision is reported as Minister of Employment and Social Development v F-M.
A 2018 Rear-End Collision Ended a Financial Analyst’s Career
The client holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s degree in globalization, international trade and emerging markets. He had worked as a financial analyst, credit analyst and accounts receivable supervisor for large international companies in Europe, South America and Canada, and was considering the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.
On May 7, 2018, he was rear-ended with his wife and son in the car. The weeks after were, in his words, “numb and foggy”. He could barely speak, and slept for nearly two weeks before trying a gradual return to work.
The headaches, mental fog, short-term memory loss, trouble following conversations and inability to focus never went away. His employer moved him to an accounts receivable supervisory role over 10 staff so he could delegate. It did not help. He was let go because he could not perform at any level.
Today he rewinds the news three or four times. A newspaper or a computer screen brings on headaches and nausea. Standing brings dizziness. Anything that needs focus makes the symptoms worse, and multitasking is impossible.
His wife told the Appeal Division that before the crash he was active, social and often worked late or took work home. Since it he naps to get through a day, loses the thread of conversations, and forgets things he never used to forget.
CPP Disability Benefits Denied Twice Before the Mike Murphy Law Group Stepped In
He applied in October 2022. Service Canada denied the claim in January 2023. He asked for reconsideration and was denied again in May 2023, by the program he had paid into through his whole working life.
Aodhan P. Murphy then appealed to the General Division of the Social Security Tribunal with medical evidence, expert testimony and the legal test set out below. Most claimants stop after reconsideration. This one did not.
The General Division allowed the appeal in October 2024. The Minister sought leave to appeal to the Appeal Division, leave was granted in March 2025, and the case went on.
The Pension Requires a Severe and Prolonged Disability
A CPP disability pension requires a disability that is both “severe” and “prolonged” by the end of the minimum qualifying period. Here that date was December 31, 2022.
“Severe” means incapable regularly of pursuing any substantially gainful occupation. Not the former job. Any job. The test is applied in a “real-world context” that accounts for age, education, language and work experience, the Villani factors from the Federal Court of Appeal.
“Prolonged” means likely to be long-continued and of indefinite duration, or likely to result in death. Both are proven on a balance of probabilities. A denial almost always means the government disputes one or the other.
A 17-Hour Neuropsychological Assessment Proved the Disability
Mr. Murphy retained Dr. Sarah Pakzad, a neuropsychologist, who spent about 17 hours with the client across several sessions. The sessions were spread out because he tired quickly, became confused, and reported fatigue, blurred vision and headaches during testing.
Her testing put verbal reasoning at the 2nd percentile, attention and concentration at the 20th, and verbal memory and learning at the 13th. She diagnosed Mild Neurocognitive Disorder due to traumatic brain injury, with Somatic Symptom Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder with Anxiety.
Her prognosis: a “significant likelihood” of permanent symptoms and functional limitations. More than two years and nine months had passed since the crash with no significant cognitive improvement, so further recovery was unlikely. He would not be able to function in any paid or voluntary work.
A 40-page Functional Capacity Evaluation by a physiotherapist in October 2021 agreed. It recorded reduced attention span, reduced organizing and planning, reduced endurance for complex cognitive tasks and reduced verbal fluency. In a computer work simulation he lasted 10 minutes. He met the physical demands of his old job but could not sustain them because of the cognitive symptoms.
Dr. Pakzad’s Evidence Outweighed the Government’s Expert
The government’s expert argued that the symptoms came from PTSD, somatoform disorder and depression rather than the brain injury, that those conditions are treatable, and that the client had not done enough to treat them. On that basis the original denial should stand. Mr. Murphy cross-examined her on each point.
He then examined Dr. Pakzad. She agreed that depression and PTSD can affect cognition, but not at this level. The cognitive deficits began immediately after the crash, before any depression. The depression followed the cognitive decline. “It is because he has cognitive problems that he has depression, not the opposite.” Medication and psychotherapy could lift his mood but would not touch deficits that come from the injury itself.
She was asked whether he could do any job: analytical work, clerical work, customer service, cashier, hotel desk clerk, delivery driving. Her answer was the same for each. His condition would interfere with any task that needs cognition, however simple.
The Appeal Division preferred her evidence. Her report was more thorough, rested on far more time with the client, and matched the Functional Capacity Evaluation. The government’s opinion was the outlier.
The Appeal Division Found No Remaining Work Capacity
The Appeal Division found a severe and prolonged disability before December 31, 2022. The client cannot do anything that needs focus without head pressure and mental fog. He cannot multitask, follow a conversation or learn anything new. He needs daily naps to get through undemanding days.
Those limits would make him “quite unappealing to prospective employers in the real world”. Dr. Pakzad agreed that no employer would hire someone who needs constant breaks. The decision asked: “Is there really a job out there that requires no focus and attention whatsoever? Not in the real world, I’m afraid.” His work capacity was found to be extinguished.
The failure-to-treat argument failed because the limitations come from the brain injury, not from the treatable mental health conditions. That argument needs proof that the untreated condition is what causes the limitation, and the evidence showed the reverse.
His inability to learn anything new also ended the usual argument that he should retrain. The Appeal Division did not address it, because it only applies where some work capacity remains. None did.
A Denial of CPP Disability Benefits Is Not Final
The government denies legitimate claims, sometimes twice, and expects claimants to give up. A form letter denies the application. The reconsideration is no more personal. This client needed a lawyer to put the evidence in front of a decision-maker in a form that showed the person behind the file.
The Canada Pension Plan pays a disability pension to contributors who can no longer work because of a severe and prolonged disability. Qualifying means meeting a legal test, assembling medical evidence, and often arguing the case against government counsel at the Appeal Division. A dedicated injury lawyer with disability experience is the difference between a permanent denial and a pension.
For this client, payments were ordered to begin in December 2022. The path ran from the October 2022 application through two denials, a General Division win, a government appeal, and the Appeal Division decision in March 2026.
The Firm Won with an Expert, a Full Record and Cross-Examination
The method here was thorough preparation, the right expert, and cross-examination. Mr. Murphy retained the neuropsychologist, assembled the evidence, examined the firm’s own witness before the Appeal Division, and defended the result against the government’s appeal.
The team at the Mike Murphy Law Group handles CPP disability appeals, long-term disability denials and personal injury claims across Atlantic Canada. It is led by Michael B. Murphy, KC, a former Attorney General and Minister of Justice of New Brunswick with over 40 years of experience and over 100 reported decisions.
FAQ
What Should I Do If My CPP Disability Benefits Are Denied?
Request reconsideration within 90 days. If that is denied, appeal to the Social Security Tribunal’s General Division. If the General Division rules against you, an appeal to the Appeal Division may be possible. Representation at each stage improves the odds, as this case shows.
Can I Get CPP Disability Benefits After a Car Accident?
Yes. If the injuries stop you from working at any substantially gainful occupation and the disability is likely to continue, the pension may be available. You must prove severe and prolonged by the end of the minimum qualifying period and have made enough CPP contributions.
Do I Need a Lawyer If My CPP Disability Benefits Are Denied?
Not by law. But the appeals turn on medical evidence, a legal test and procedural rules, and the government has counsel at every stage. Retaining a neuropsychologist and presenting the full record at the Appeal Division is what won this case. Unrepresented claimants rarely match that.
How Long Does a CPP Disability Appeal Take?
Here the application was filed in October 2022, the General Division decided in October 2024, and the Appeal Division decided in March 2026: about three and a half years. Early legal involvement avoids some of the delay.
Can I Receive CPP Disability Benefits and Pursue a Personal Injury Claim at the Same Time?
Yes. CPP disability is monthly income replacement from the federal government. A personal injury claim seeks pain and suffering, lost income and future care from the at-fault driver’s insurer. The firm runs both together.