This course breaks down the structured interview domains, the cognitive hierarchy, and the functional indicators of traumatic brain injury into clear, defensible methodology you can immediately apply in your medical-legal work. Through real-world examples, ecologically valid testing strategies, and case-based analysis, you will learn how to differentiate impairment profiles across home, community, work/school, social and leisure activities, and family/friendship domains. We’ll demonstrate how OTs uniquely synthesize clinical interviews, collateral, performance-based measures, and narrative analysis to support transparent and robust opinions. Designed for clinicians who want to elevate their assessment practice, this workshop equips you with the tools, structure, and rationale needed for medical-legal assessments.

Participants will receive a certificate of participation, full access to all workshop materials, and supplementary resources to strengthen and streamline your assessment practice!

Melissa Paniccia, PhD, OT Reg. (Ont.)

Melissa Paniccia is a registered Occupational Therapist in good standing with the College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario. She has over a decade of specialized experience in brain injury, mental health, and medical-legal assessment. She holds an Honours BSc in Behavioural Biology, an MSc in Occupational Therapy, and a PhD in Rehabilitation Sciences and Neuroscience from the University of Toronto, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, where she helped develop pediatric concussion guidelines.

In her medical-legal practice, Melissa focuses on Catastrophic Determination and Accident Benefits assessments for both plaintiff and defence. She developed and lead a training curriculum for occupational therapists conducting mental and behavioural catastrophic impairment assessments. Melissa has also been qualified as an expert witness. 

Melissa has actively contributed to research regarding brain injury, mental health issues, and the scope of occupational therapy practice, with multiple peer-reviewed publications and invited presentations locally, nationally, and internationally on brain injury and mental health. Most recently, she was the invited keynote speaker for the Ontario Brain Injury Association's provincial conference where she highlighted the importance of ecologically valid assessment. She is the first Occupational Therapist appointed to the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the Medico-Legal Society of Toronto and represents Occupational Therapy on the Coalition of Health Professions in Auto Insurance.

Dr. Lara Davidson, PhD, C. Psych

Dr. Lara Davidson is a licensed Psychologist (Certificate of Registration # 4312) in the Province of Ontario. She was granted a license for autonomous practice in 2006. Her areas of specialty are Clinical Neuropsychology, Clinical Psychology, and Rehabilitation Psychology. As part of her doctoral degree, Dr. Davidson completed an internship at Henry Ford Health Sciences Centre, Detroit, Michigan, with a primary rotation in Clinical Neuropsychology. Dr. Davidson then completed a two year Clinical Neuropsychology postdoctoral fellowship at Community Head Injury Resource Services of Toronto, where she continued to conduct assessments and treatment, primarily with individuals with acquired brain injury. Dr. Davidson currently maintains a treatment and assessment practice, including psychological and neuropsychological evaluations in brain injury and general injury populations. She is a consulting neuropsychologist at Sunnybrook/St. John’s Rehab Hospital. She also provides clinical supervision. Dr. Davidson was a board member for the Canadian Academy of Psychologists in Disability Assessment from 2015 to 2021 and 2023 to 2024. She is certified by the American Board of Forensic Professionals in impairment and disability rating based on the AMA Guides, Fourth Edition. She is also certified by the Canadian Society of Medical Evaluators/Canadian Academy of Psychologists in Disability Assessment in mental behavioural impairment rating based on the AMA Guides, Fourth and Sixth Editions, including successful completion of the C-CAT(MB) exam. Dr. Davidson holds the designation of Certified Medicolegal Expertise (CMLE) conferred by the Canadian Society of Medical Evaluators/Canadian Academy of Psychologists in Disability Assessment. She has been qualified as an expert witness by the Superior Court of Ontario, FSCO, and the LAT. She has conducted well over 1000 independent medical examinations, with referrals related to motor vehicle accident, slip and fall, general injury, medical malpractice, and long-term disability.

Our medical-legal panel will delve into nuanced and debated challenges in Criterion 4/GOS-E work—where diagnosis meets real-world function and insight on how these cases are litigated. Together, we’ll explore how clinicians reconcile neurocognitive profiles with ecologically valid OT findings, and understand how factors like fatigue, mental health sequelae, and pain shape functional ratings. The panel will unpack the limits of traditional testing, examine complex profiles,  and discuss how to interpret functioning when collateral data, lived performance, and structured testing don’t neatly align. Expect a rigorous, practical conversation on how to think through “moving target” cases, defend your reasoning, and support rating clinicians with transparent, defensible analysis.

Stay tuned for more info!

For any questions related to the workshop, please contact Melissa Paniccia: [email protected]