What Is an
injury lawsuit Settlement?
A settlement agreement is an agreement between the plaintiff and defendant to settle the dispute outside of court. This is a quick and efficient way to get compensation.
Non-economic damages are harder to quantify in dollars. This includes things like pain and discomfort.
Medical expenses
Depending on the severity of an injury, medical costs can make up a large portion of the settlement. These may include doctor's visits and medications, surgeries, and other procedures. Most of the time, these expenses are not covered by health insurance, and can be very expensive. In a lot of instances, there are additional costs due to the injury like home health treatment such as adaptive devices, transportation to medical appointments, and many more.
Medical bills are typically paid by a private health insurance company or the government's Medicare or Medicaid, or your PIP coverage. If you are awarded a settlement that has medical bills that are not paid, the funds from the settlement will be used to pay them. Your attorney can negotiate with billing companies to lower the amounts.
Your lawyer can also decide the appropriate amount to cover any other losses that are not medically related. This includes loss of future earnings along with pain and suffering and other non-economic damages. To be able to file a claim your attorney will have to present evidence and expert testimony regarding these additional damages.
Loss of wages
In addition to compensation for medical expenses, injured victims may also be entitled to lost wages. The amount of damages is by the amount of time that the victim was absent from work because of their injuries. A personal injury lawyer can help their clients recover lost wages in a personal
injury lawsuit.
A traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury, for instance, could cause you to miss large amounts of work. You must prove that the accident caused you to miss work. It is crucial to include all forms of income when proving your loss of wages. This includes regular wages and overtime, bonuses and commissions. You can also include unused vacation or sick days.
If your doctor decides that you're able to return work with certain limitations, the employer has to comply with these restrictions. This could involve modifying certain aspects of your job or providing useful equipment.
A personal injury lawyer who is experienced can help you gather the necessary information to support your claim for lost wages. They can also assist when the person injured is self-employed, or receiving a variable salary. In these cases an insurance company must examine the earnings of the past and the future of the person who was injured and provide a fair estimate of the future loss of wages. This may require a detailed financial report from the plaintiff's accountant, or a financial professional.
Non-economic damages
When people think about personal injury injuries, the first thing they think of is the money lost through medical expenses and lost wage. However, there are many other costs associated with injury which are more difficult to quantify in dollar amounts. These are called non-economic damages. These damages cover the non-economic effects of injury, such as suffering, pain and enjoyment of life.
Pay stubs and bills may be used to prove economic damages for
injury lawsuit courts and juries. Non-economic damages on the contrary are more difficult to calculate and can be based on subjective factors like suffering, pain, or emotional distress.
Pain and
injury lawsuit suffering refers to any mental, physical or emotional distress that is a result of the accident. It could also include the inability of a person to participate to their usual social or leisure activities. A jury will look at the consequences of the injury to the victim's life.
Other non-economic losses include disfigurement, loss of consortium, and loss of enjoyment of life. For example, a person may suffer from disfigurement after an accident that permanently alters their appearance. While this isn't an expense however, it can be extremely painful to bear scratches and other injuries that will last forever.
Damages to relieve pain and Suffering
Pain and suffering are not economic damages that cover the physical and mental stress caused by your accident. These are subjective damages, which are determined by the jury, and not medical bills and auto repairs as well as lost wages. Each juror will have different opinion on how much pain and suffering compensation is appropriate for your situation.
One way to help a jury understand the severity of your injuries is to provide documentation. Your lawyer can collect the medical records of your doctor that provide details of your injuries, along with video and photographs. Testimonies from family and friends can also be persuasive. These testimonies may help inspire sympathy from the jury and demonstrate how your injury has affected your life, such as hobbies and family activities.
The length of your injury can also impact the amount you receive for suffering and pain. Pain and suffering awards are generally higher for serious and disabling injuries than injuries that heal faster.
Injuries claims should reflect the emotional and psychological trauma that is caused by an accident. Personal injury attorneys can assist you in constructing a strong case, and ensure fair settlement for all of your injuries. If you have questions regarding a possible injury settlement make a call to Adam S. Kutner & Associates for a free consultation.